FLA finance Directory
July 30th, 2010 by Richard Aucock
FLA chiefs are promoting the advantages of dealer finance with a new online Dealer Directory contact guide.
Made up of all car dealers who meet the SAF Approved accreditation system, the Dealer Directory is aimed at helping car buyers seek out the best type of finance deal for them.
The flash new web aid does this by pointing buyers to dealers whose staff are proven to understand the world of car finance. The criteria? Success in the SAF test devised by the FLA.
The idea behind it is to improve consumer confidence in car finance. All too often, negative stories of finance gone wrong make the consumer headlines – and in so many cases, greater understanding on the customer’s part could have helped avoid such sticky situations.
By fully explaining car finance, the FLA is facilitating better and more informed discussions between dealer and buyer.
It’s a simple online gadget to use. Car buyers enter their postcode into the directory. It calls up the names, addresses and telephone numbers of the 5 nearest SAF Approved dealers – along with an interactive map with each dealership’s location.
How many are in it at the moment? Nearly 500 SAF Approved dealerships across the UK – where nearly 10,000 SAF Approved finance experts are on hand to advise car buyers about the many different types of car finance.
Paul Harrison, head of motor finance at the FLA, underlined the message: ‘Because the Dealer Directory only lists dealerships that have reached the SAF Approved standard, if a car buyer visits a listed dealership they can be confident they will speak to knowledgeable staff that can provide reliable advice on their car finance options.
‘I hope the standard of car finance advice will continue to improve as more and more dealers sign-up to SAF,’ he added.
‘Our new directory will help raise consumer awareness of what the SAF brand stands for in helping people to get the best possible car finance deal.’
Don’t forget the SAF test is central to the Dealer Directory tool. The test does not teach staff how to sell finance but aims to improve their overall finance knowledge
A demand for (free) annual retests by all members is consistently growing the reputation of the car finance business. Car buyers know SAF Approved dealers will not only have proven financial understanding once, but will have done it on a rolling basis.
It’s why Harrison is encouraging customers to look out for the SAF Approved logo in showrooms and local advertising.
‘The SAF logo is a kite-mark, letting consumers know that the advice they receive is of the standard set by the FLA – the representative body for the UK motor finance industry’
Naturally, all this is giving those dealers a competitive advantage, as well as a highly creditable form of advertising from an independent source – for free! If you’re not in it, maybe it’s thus time you reconsidered taking the SAF Approved test?
Tags: dealer directory, finance, fla, saf