We’re really sorry if you’ve had to wait longer for your vehicles than anticipated and from all of us at Adept we wanted to say thank you for your patience.
Customers often ask us why there’s such a long wait for new cars and vans so we wanted to take this opportunity to explain. Still recovering from the disruption caused by the pandemic there are a number of other factors affecting the global supply chain. As well as the time between ordering and the delivery date doubling it’s also affected cost which we know is frustrating. Here are some of the key reasons contributing to the delay and rising costs.
Fuel and Energy Prices
Rising fuel and energy costs are affecting all of us. From paying more for our gas and electricity supplies to filling up the car with fuel, we’re all paying much more than we were. In June the RAC estimated that the average cost of filling up the family car was more than £100 for the first time ever.
And you only have to go into a supermarket and see the cost increases of everyday items to see the knock-on effects these rising costs are bringing.
It affects operating costs for all businesses as more than three quarters of domestic freight is transported on the roads. The rising costs get passed onto customers and the automotive industry isn’t immune – car and van parts have all been affected.
War in Ukraine
Seeing the human impact of the war in Ukraine is devastating. Alongside the humanitarian costs Russian’s invasion has also led to global sanctions on its economy and disruption to supply chains and energy production.
Ukraine actually has seventeen factories where wiring loop components are made for both cars and vans. Without these parts vehicles can’t be built.
BMW, Mercedes-Benz and Porsche have all said there are supply issues because of the war and the Volkswagen Group is moving to other factories to maintain production levels.
Vehicle factories closing, sanctions in Russia and shortages of materials because of the war are all reducing vehicle production globally this year.
Battery Costs
Last year sales for electric vehicles doubled which is putting added pressure on battery supply chains.
Demand has seen the costs of raw materials rising hugely.
And when you think that battery packs are around a third of the costs of an electric vehicle – we could see those prices passed onto customer with an increase in list prices.
Chip Shortages
Modern vehicles all have a vital component called a semiconductor chip. They’re produced at specialist centres called ‘fab,’ but the pandemic and other issues have meant that supply is outstripping demand – with a six-month lead time in many cases.
Some manufacturers have managed to sort their own supply but we are aware that some makes and models are affected more than others.
If you do have vehicles on order with us please be aware that the lead time quoted may now be extended. We’d also advise beginning to discuss your vehicle renewals with us earlier than usual
Changes to Funding and Regulations
There have previously been grants available to encourage the take up of electric vehicles but many of these have now been wound down.
In June the plug-in car grant was removed for most electric vehicles and the electric vehicle homepage scheme is no longer available for single occupant properties.
It means that with fewer grants around, consumers may see higher prices for some makes and models, as well as added costs for installing charge points at home.
What Are We Doing to Help?
We’ve brought in a range of measures to support our customers with the supply issues continuing.
We’ve welcomed six more people to the team to keep up with the levels of enquiries and to maintain customer service levels (more about our new recruits in future blogs).
We have also implemented a new phone system with dedicated numbers to put you through to the right people and department to deal with your specific enquiries.
Their contact details are below:
• Vehicle Updates
[email protected] and [email protected]
• Delivery Booking / Paperwork
[email protected] and [email protected]
• Short Term Rental updates and Short-Term Rental Delivery Bookings / Paperwork
[email protected] , [email protected] or [email protected]
Our Short-Term Rental fleet has also increased to help our customers while the supply problems continue.
We offer cost effective flexible Short Term Leasing Solutions to meet your needs.
As your fleet care specialists, we understand how frustrating a long lead in time can be, which is why we wanted to do this blog to explain the reasons behind it. We are always here to answer any questions honestly and give you the other options available. If you’re not sure who to speak to, please don’t hesitate to call on 01782 562246 or email [email protected]