Tag Archives: vehicles

Finance and Banking, News

WeDo Business Services launches new finance division to help fuel growth for SMEs

WeDo Business Services group has unveiled the latest stage of its expansion strategy with a new venture providing established SMEs and start-ups with asset-based finance to fuel their growth plans.

The new division, WeDo Asset Finance, is based out of the group’s headquarters in Oldham and is operating nationwide, with a goal of lending to more than 200 clients over the next 12 months.

WeDo Asset Finance is led by a trio with more than 85 years’ sector experience between them.

Rebekah Middleton has joined as managing director. She was previously head of corporate at Bibby Leasing, where she focused on structured lending and larger asset refinance facilities.

She has worked in finance for nearly 30 years, including roles at Davenham Asset Finance, Time Finance, Close Brothers and GE Capital.

Stuart Berry, who worked in the asset finance industry for more than 25 years, has joined as operations director. Emma Smith, who has 30 years’ experience in asset and trade finance, has joined as head of sales support.

WeDo Asset Finance is specialising in hire purchase funding and finance leasing for companies looking to buy assets such as vehicles, machinery and other equipment.

Among the sectors in which it is operating are manufacturing, food processing, engineering, forestry and agriculture, transport, haulage and construction.

Rebekah said many small businesses and start-ups have been struggling to obtain asset finance amid market uncertainty and global economic challenges.

She added: “We have identified a gap in the market for creative funding solutions provided by a knowledgeable, approachable and accessible team.

“We have the flexibility to provide tailored packages to suit the peaks and troughs of the business cycle, for example with higher repayments during peak sales periods and lower ones when things are predictably quieter.

“With an industry-recognised software platform and an experienced team, we are delivering from the get-go, with our first deals completed and a number of others in the pipeline.

“We are implementing a carefully-managed growth strategy to be achieved by accessing increased funding, maintaining a good quality book and developing strong and meaningful introducer partner relationships, while at the same time being able to offer access to the wider WeDo group’s services.”

The WeDo business was founded by Mark Lindsay and Chris Robinson in 2019 with just four staff and has grown rapidly through organic expansion and acquisition.

It has over 75 staff across offices in Oldham, MediaCityUK in Salford, Sheffield, Bromsgrove, Swindon and Feering in Essex.

Last year, the group launched WeDo Accountancy Services offering a range of services to SMEs and their directors, including annual and management accounts, bookkeeping, VAT and payroll services, self-assessment tax returns and advisory services.

The group also provides invoice and trade finance, start-up funding, HR, back-office and IT services to its client base.

Mark, the group’s chief executive, said: “The launch of WeDo Asset Finance is a further demonstration of our commitment to service all of our clients’ business needs to help them grow and thrive.

“Rebekah and the team have decades of experience, and they are dedicated to helping established companies, as well as new ventures, acquire essential pieces of kit or take advantage of new opportunities while freeing up their cashflow by spreading lending across regular affordable repayments at fixed rates and fixed terms.

“It’s an exciting addition to our portfolio and we are confident that the team will enjoy great success at a time when other funding routes are proving difficult for SMEs and start-ups to access.”

News, North of England

UK needs to swiftly amplify accessibility of chargepoints

Written by Mr. Kunal Sawhney, CEO, Kalkine Media

Building an efficient electric vehicle (EV) landscape is not only about making the vehicles affordable to purchase and own, but it also entails several other factors, including the post-sale services, charging infrastructure and availability of chargepoints in rural and semi-urbanised localities.

The government of the United Kingdom, alongside the major EV manufacturers and ancillary suppliers, are collectively working to increase the perceived value of the vehicles that can encourage more consumers to buy eco-friendly vehicles in the present decade, thereby supporting the nation’s plan to ban the sale of new petrol and diesel cars by 2030.

The elimination of all the fossil fuel powered passenger vehicles by 2035 from the roads will be pivotal in bolstering the broader objective of attaining a net zero status by 2050.

The Competition and Markets Authority (CMA) has laid out several measures to make sure that there is an ample number of EV chargepoints in the country by the time the authorities put a ban on the sale of new petrol and diesel cars in 2030.

According to the CMA, the availability of EV chargepoints has been increasing relatively well at locations including private parking garages, driveways, shopping centres and workplaces, but several parts are still facing problems that can hinder the government’s plans of embargoing the sale of new petrol and diesel cars.

A potential delay in the near-term objectives, including the ban on petrol and diesel cars, can certainly extend the timeline of the larger objective of becoming net zero nation by 2050. At the moment, the rural jurisdictions only account for a handful of EV chargepoints, mostly due to lower investment, while the roll-out of on-street charge stations by the local authorities is witnessing very slow growth in the installation.

As far as the driver’s ease is concerned, a large section of car owners, including the commercial drivers, will rely on the on-street chargepoints as nobody has sufficient time to detour to a shopping centre every time when the vehicle needs a backup, while workplaces can only establish a few chargepoints due to space constraints.

As of now, the total public chargepoints in Yorkshire and the Humber per head are quarter as compared to those available in London. Recharging your vehicle certainly requires a high amount of time as compared to refilling with petrol or diesel, as a result of which, it can be burdensome for drivers when there is an emergency.

The level of difficulty and frustration in accessing a chargepoint can abate the apparent enthusiasm amidst the car buyers, it could even lead to an immense disappointment and will eventually diminish the number of people who are looking forward to switching to an EV.

The transformation at such a large scale unequivocally requires added advantages, and, at the same time, there must be ease of switching to EVs from the conventional vehicles and age-old habit of quick refilling. Furthermore, the vast difference in the prices and tariffs set by privately held chargepoints can induce concerns about the reliability of charge stations.

As the EV ecosystem passes the nascent stage, people often find it difficult to compare prices for recharging the vehicles. In order to facilitate an experience like a refuelling station, the authorities are required to ensure that the recharging stations must have quick service chargepoints and transparent pricing.

All the operations chargepoints should be easy-to-locate, the working condition should be updated regularly in EVs that have a lower buffer of energy as compared to petrol or diesel vehicles. Along with this, the charging experience should be simple and quick to pay, with no obligatory requirement of signing up or registration and an abundance of payment options.

Uniformity of chargepoints should also be maintained as with the limited number of stations, the country is not in a position to bifurcate the recharging places for different types of vehicles. As per the estimates of the competition regular, the present count of chargepoints in the UK stands at 25,000, while more than 10 times this number will be required if the government wants to eliminate the petrol and diesel vehicles within the predefined time period.

News

Study Reveals UK Motorists Spending More Cash on Better Cars Post Lockdown

UK motorists are now spending more cash on better cars now that lockdown restrictions continue to ease, according to a recent study.

After the coronavirus lockdown at the end of March, the motor industry came to a virtual standstill, where factories halted production lines, and dealerships closed their doors.

Even dealers that were still offering an online click and collect or delivery service, such as Boongate Kia in Cambridgeshire were still required to meet social distancing regulations.

However, it appears that now restrictions are lifting, consumers who were actively in the market when the lockdown was imposed, are now in a position to spend more cash.

This has been backed up by the latest figures from a study by BuyaCar, which shows that the average price of a used car in June 2020 was £14,600 – an increase of over £1,000 from this time last year.

“This is likely down to the fact that drivers have saved more money and have had the time to go in-depth with research, and are increasingly looking for a nicer vehicle,” said Boongate Kia Managing Director and car finance expert Andy O’Shea.

“What’s intriguing about this is that prices are being driven by consumer appetite to spend that bit more, rather than paying higher prices forced upon them by the market.”

“Although we do sell more budget-friendly vehicles, which come with exactly the same guarantees and protections, we’re seeing our customers treating themselves to something more expensive, so in that sense, our experiences are lining up with the study.”

“Although the majority of our customers still want to come in and chat, we’re also seeing an increased desire to undertake the car purchasing process entirely online, which means it’ll be important that dealers can offer contactless services, such as the click and delivery service, that we started during lockdown, and live chats and video calls.”