There are very few guarantees in life, however there is one when you are buying and selling pre-owned and used vehicles, and that guarantee is that at least one of your cars will breakdown. It's at this point that you can chose to win or lose a customer for life.

The IMDA Support Team will empower you to become proactive in your response to such situations and give you the confidence to handle it with professionalism.

The IMDA have teamed up with Motor Trade Legal experts  to provide a fantastic level of support included in your annual subscription.

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We can offer our members Support in the following complex areas:-

• Legal Rights
• HR & Employment Law
• Health & Safety
• Taxation
• Accounting
• FCA Compliance
• GDPR
• Customer Complaints & Consumer Rights Act 2015
• Motor Industry Best Practice

No more burying your head in the sand avoiding an issue. The IMDA Hub will become your first stop in the journey to a successful conclusion of a negative situation.

Disclaimer *Please note that each member is entitle to a maximum of 2 hours of Legal Help within their subscription period

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Consumer Law

The introduction of the Consumer Rights Act 2015 fundamentally altered not only the law in relation to the sale and supply of goods and services, but also consumer’s perceptions of their rights.

Goods are satisfactory if they meet the standard that a reasonable person would consider satisfactory, taking account their description, price, or representations made about them. It may be relevant to take into consideration the fitness for all the purposes for which goods of that kind are usually supplied, their appearance and finish, freedom from minor defects, safety and durability, but the simple presence of a minor defect, does not in itself mean that the goods are not of satisfactory quality, particularly on a used vehicle.

Dealing with customer demands, in particular to reject goods, is becoming increasingly complicated. Access to the Lawdata legal team means that dealers get the advice they need, when they need it. Having the right support in place provides dealers with the confidence to ensure that problems are addressed promptly, proportionately and correctly, before they have chance to escalate.

Employment Law

Employment Law has become increasingly regulated, and increasingly expensive if employers don’t get everything exactly right. Recent changes removing fees for issuing tribunal claims have opened the floodgates of litigation. It is therefore essential to ensure that the business has the right procedures in place right from the very start of the recruitment process.

Discrimination issues cannot simply be ignored; particular care must be taken to ensure that employees are not treated unfairly simply because they don’t fit in.

Ensuring that the business has basic policies in relation to discrimination issues, smoking, drinking, maternity leave, paternity leave, dependency leave and internet use may seem overly bureaucratic at the outset, but may prove to be invaluable when problems inevitably arise.

It is also vitally important to ensure that disciplinary and grievance procedures are followed to the letter. Getting it wrong will be expensive. Dismissal procedures apply to any dismissal, including redundancy and are vitally important.

Access to the Lawdata legal team means that dealers get the advice they need, when they need it.  Having the right support in place provides dealers with the confidence to ensure that problems are addressed promptly, proportionately and correctly, before they have chance to escalate

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Trading Standards Legislation

Trading Standards law embraces a raft of legislation that impinges on various aspects of the businesses in the retail motor trade.

Where the Company is in breach of any such obligation or duty then they may expect Trading Standards action and subsequent prosecution unless a statutory legal defence is in evidence.

In the event of proceedings being instituted, unless all elements of the legal statutory defence are in place, then the Company may find that a conviction is inevitable. The business will need to show both that it took all reasonable precautions, and that it acted with due diligence to avoid the commission of the offence.

A conviction, even on an apparent technicality, will invite the unwelcome attention of both media and consumer organisations and potentially present difficulties for the business in continuing to offer credit facilities.

Access to the Lawdata legal team means that dealers get the advice they need, when they need it.  Having the right support in place provides dealers with the confidence to ensure that problems are addressed promptly, proportionately and correctly, before they have chance to escalate.

VAT

VAT is not a simple tax, and the implications of an error are potentially very expensive. The cost of errors is increased by severe penalties and interest, plus the additional cost of dealing with HMRC. The benefit of having access to VAT support is obvious.

Les Howard, our VAT consultant has 25 years’ experience in VAT, including a spell working for H M Revenue & Customs and has worked with numerous businesses and charities, across many different sectors providing cost-effective VAT advice and solutions.

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