45% of drivers have known faults on their cars!

There is a growing concern about repair standards in the motor industry; the result, according to a survey by Brake and Direct Line, is that almost half (45%) of drivers are driving cars that they know to be faulty.

Recent research has highlighted that drivers are not carrying out basic and essential vehicle maintenance checks (e.g. tyres/brakes) with more than a quarter not being confident in carrying out the checks themselves. These percentages changed significantly between age groups.

The chief executive of the Institute of the Motor Industry (IMI), Steve Nash, believes that this research underlines a lack of confidence by consumers in the type of service they will receive from garages and that many motorists choose a garage without knowing whether the mechanics have sufficient competences to do the job.

This research makes for scary reading that garage reputations could cause such significant customer behaviour and raises many questions about what needs to change to make car maintenance a more trusted retail style experience.