Dear All

How about you take this opportunity to have your voice heard?

Send in an appropriate, fact based response.

Don't let this be a one sided 'stone throwing' competition.

Why not talk about: extended service intervals, price of parts, complexity of the modern motor vehicle, investment required to be a technician/garage, vehicle manufacturers lack of information sharing etc...

Also, to put this into perspective (read the post in the link again), the survey is based on customer feelings and beliefs - there does not appear to be that many (or any at all?) hard facts presented by the survey.

By way of example: I believe that Sainos have too much power over Milk suppliers and have been involved in price fixing with other supermarkets (fact sustained by the competition commission leading to a combined fine of £112 million ) and they charge customers too much for Kopparberg Pear Cider (just a belief of mine); I believe that the quiz questions on GMTV are so simple that they are aimed at getting people to call in so that GMTV collect the £'ss from the premium rate phone number, and there may not actually be a real competiton running and GMTV actively set out to rip off their viewers (fact sustained by a £2 million fine levied by OfCom in September 2007).

Pot - Kettle etc, big grin!

Undoubtedly, joking aside, this survey shows that there is a perception issue with some of the motoring population (customers, insurance companies, TV companies etc.) when it comes to quality of service from garages and technicians. How about we all get behind the ATA scheme and become professionally accredited and empower the IMI to defend our joint reputations and that of our trade?

Kind regards

James.