The latest Castrol Professional Car Servicing and Repair Trend tracker report shows an increase in the market share of the independent garage sector.
The report indicates that to the end of 2013 the market reached a share of 50% including MOTs, up from the 46.3% recorded in an update published earlier this year. The franchised dealer market kept its share at 24.8% with the increase for independents seemingly coming at the expense of the DIY market.
The entire retail market for service, maintenance and repairs (SMR) was £9.88 billion in 2013, representing a decline of 3% since 2003. However, during the period of economic instability since 2008 the market has increase by 9.6%. The total number of services and mechanical transactions declined by nearly 10% since 2003.
The UK’s aging car parc is also helping to boost work coming into the independent garage according to the report. The number of licenced cars under four years-old fell by 23.6% between 2004 and 2012, while over the same period the licenced cars between six and thirteen years old increased by 33% and those over 13 years-old by 31% - despite the government scrappage scheme running during this period. This means the demand for repairs and MOTs increases, boosting the SMR market.
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