AFT_B912

NEWS 6 AFTERMARKET DECEMBER/JANUARY 2020 www.aftermarketonline.net Garage death in Swindon A man died at a Wiltshire garage recently, after becoming trapped under a car. The fatality took place at JB Autos in Swindon, and was reported at 8.45am on Friday 15 November, according to BBC News. An investigation was underway as Aftermarket went to press. The man was found by a member of staff when they arrived for work. Wiltshire Police said the death is not being treated as suspicious or classed as an industrial incident. Workshop emptied in garage robbery A garage based in the Forest of Dean has been hit by a burglary that appeared to have specifically targeted the workshop side of the business. Court Farm Garage, based in the village of Littldean in Gloucestershire lost a safe and its contents, and an estimated £60,000 - £70,000 worth of equipment. Even cleaning cloths were taken during the November break-in, reported The Forester newspaper. The business owned by couple Jenny and Grant Hughes, is a used car retailer and garage. The morning after the raid, the pair and their team found their CCTV cut off, hard-drying foam in the alarms, and their safe and equipment missing. The safe was found dumped shortly afterwards, seven miles away. Jenny Hughes told The Forester it would have taken three people to lift the safe, and suspects the robbery was the work of an organised gang. Ram-raid hits Crewe garage Decelerometers are the next equipment type that will need to be able to connect directly to the MOT testing service when being replaced. The DVSA is advising garages that from 1 February 2020, anyone buying a new or replacement decelerometer for class 3, 4, 5 or 7 test lanes will need to make sure it can connect to the MOT testing service. This includes buying replacement equipment, and as part of the process of getting MOT authorisation. This follows the introduction of connected roller brake testers on 1 October 2019. Chris Price, DVSA Head of MOT Policy said: “We’ve brought connected equipment in to modernise testing in MOT garages and reduce the potential for mistakes. It will make testing quicker, more accurate and give motorists greater confidence in the quality of testing. Garages already using this equipment have seen benefits to their business.” DVSA is working with the GEA to agree the standards for connected equipment and approve models for use. DVSA is planning to introduce the same rules for connectable models of exhaust gas analyser, diesel smoke meter and headlamp aligner, and will confirm the date of rule changes in due course. www.aftermarketonline.net A Crewe-based garage is experiencing tough times after a ram raid on their premises that resulted in £10,000 of structural damage alone. Police we called to SD Autos at 9pm on Sunday 27 October, following reports of a burglary. Upon arriving, officers found front door ripped off. Nothing was taken, but the damage caused by the break-in was extensive. Father and daughter Stuart and Rachael Allan are the owners of SD Autos. Co-owner Rachael Allan told Cheshire Live: "We were ram raided. We have everything on CCTV and there is great structural damage. Luckily, they didn't get to take anything as something spooked them and they drove off quickly along with another truck waiting to be loaded with items. We only got alerted by someone who knows us and they phoned my dad." MOT connectivity: Decelerometers next Follow us on Facebook @aftermarketmagazine New figures from the SMMT show that if the UK faced trade tariffs following Brexit, the result would decimate UK car manufacturing, with 1.5 million vehicles lost by 2024 at a cost of £42.7 billion. At its Annual Dinner on Tuesday 26 November 2019, SMMT President George Gillespie outlined the industry’s vision for the future, saying, “The automotive sector is going through a period of unprecedented change and we must not let the pressure of Brexit deflect from our focus on a coherent national industrial strategy. Collaboration between industry and government must be stronger than ever.” He spoke as SMMT revealed new figures showing the impact of Brexit without a trade deal. Independent research commissioned by the trade body shows WTO tariffs on imported components and exported vehicles would add more than £3.2 billion a year to UK automotive manufacturing costs. Mike Hawes, SMMT Chief Executive, commented: “UK Automotive’s needs are clear: frictionless trade free of tariffs, with regulatory alignment and continued access to talent. Detailed trade negotiations have yet to begin. They will be complex and they will take time. But a close trading relationship is essential to unlock investment so we can deliver our goals: cleaner air, zero carbon emissions, and the ability to go on building our products and marketing them globally.” www.aftermarketonline.net Brexit bill could cost motor sector £42.7 billion