Both outfits, who wish to remain nameless, are based in the Midlands at the hub of the used market dealing in Swedish and German products. “That 8-10% increase at the front end cannot be absorbed in today’s haulage market because operators just don’t have that kind of margin to cover it,” says dealer ‘A’.
“What’s more the bigger companies with more buying power are more than likely looking at a rise of only 2-3% in volume purchases so the smaller outfits are suffering again,” he continues but his main ire is the fact the government has again failed to deliver.
“What is the point of having a Euro-rating system when the day’s government doesn’t reward operators who moves with the times? Many blame digital and to a certain degree it’s right but rewarding Euro-4 purchases, which will become the forgotten rating, could have gone some way to offsetting a move to Euro-4 and digital.”
Dealer ‘B’ is more forthright: “It’s like a train wreck; scouring for late-year Euro-3 is a short-sighted fallacy, manufacturers banging on about Euro-5 this and that, and the government saying it will reward it misses the issue.
“The market is stalling today; operators are being forced to invest in substandard Euro-ratings because that is all they can afford. Surely manufacturers, who invest in heavyweight research and development programmes, can’t believe it’s all going to pan out with Euro-5? What state will the used market be in three years time with no viable products to market?
“Unless something is done we, and many like us, are going to be out of business and manufacturers, with their clean gleaming used networks, will have the field to themselves with no one offering them a fair fight. A market with no competition is a market open to abuse.”