Coronavirus: GMP Drivercare Business Continuity Plan

At GMP Drivercare, the wellbeing of our team and clients is at the top of our priorities, as is delivering the best client care and advice.

In light of the uncertainty we all face in our daily lives with the outbreak of COVID-19 (Coronavirus), we’d like to share with you some relevant information from our business continuity plan to ensure we are prepared for different scenarios and complying with government advice. 

It is business as usual as far as GMP is concerned but please bear with us if things take a little longer to get resolved as we are dealing with many different suppliers etc. who may be experiencing delays and interruptions with regard to their normal service delivery. 

The best way to contact GMP currently is via email address  info@gmpdrivercare.co.uk

The purpose of our contingency plan is to keep supporting you and your employees during this difficult time.

We are now seeing manufacturers temporarily close their production factories with varying predicted timescales for reopening which could, of course, extend at any point.

Please see below an update of what we are seeing from manufacturers. Please note that this is changing quickly and we will update you as and when they change.

Vehicle owners to be granted MOT exemption in battle against coronavirus - GOV.UK

Vehicle owners to be granted MOT exemption in the battle against coronavirus – GOV.UK

https://www.gov.uk/government/news/vehicle-owners-to-be-granted-mot-exemption-in-battle-against-coronavirus

Prestige, GMP Autocare (Servicing and MOT)

Further to my email earlier this week and news that many more dealer groups and garages networks are closing, we can accommodate your cancelled bookings within the Prestige network with immediate effect and we have a team on hand to assist with bookings, should you need support at enquiries@prestigeservicing.com

If you have specific requirements for key worker fleet that requires priority or special focus please let me know directly and we can get this underway as matter of urgency.

Network update 25/03/2020
Total network available 402
Active for C&D 335
Available slots for booking this week 691

Let us know if you need booking assistance at this stage and thank you again for your continued support.

Kind regards

Prestige Fleet Servicing Ltd

 

Parts Suppliers
  • Brembo (brakes), Michelin, Pirelli and Plastic Omnium (body panels and fuel systems) have confirmed temporary shutdowns;
  • Bosch, Continental, Valeo (Electrical systems), Webasto (sunroofs), Autoliv (safety components) and ZF Friedrichshafen (transmissions) will continue to operate.
Funders/Providers

Arnold Clark

it would appear the Government’s next stage of their plan to tackle the onset of COVID19 is a complete lockdown situation, similar to those seen in other European countries, and whilst the government have been clear in a number of sectors, those businesses should close, restaurants, pubs, clubs, gyms and cinemas because of the large social gatherings, they have not been clear about other sectors such as ours. Therefore, the advice of whether to go to work or stay at home is unclear.

Our directors and CEO believe that now is the time to prepare for this inevitability, which we expect the government to enforce this week. However, now is the time for Arnold Clark to enforce its own lockdown and therefore we will close our business down on Wednesday 25th March, earlier if required by government and will not resume operations until at least Easter Monday, 13th April or until the government lockdown is lifted – whichever is earliest.

As such all deliveries and collections will go ahead as planned tomorrow 24/03/2020 and after this date, no other deliveries or collections should or will go ahead until normal service resumes.

Under no circumstances should a vehicle be taxed or delivered after tomorrow’s date and would request that you cancel all pre-booked deliveries with immediate effect.

These are unprecedented times and as such I hope you understand our reasoning’s around these measures. I have no further information to supply at the moment and as soon as I know anything else I shall let you know.

For now our maintenance team will remain open for emergency repair works, servicing, MOT’s and breakdowns. They can be contacted on 0141 648 1199

Leaseplan

We have heard from our vehicle manufacturers and dealerships that they’re in the process of either suspending or closing their operations for a period in response to the Coronavirus pandemic. There is now limited availability of new vehicles.

Formal extensions

We still want to support all our clients. Deciding what to do in the current environment is tricky, therefore we want to work with you to give you time to assess the situation and navigate the coming weeks and months. As a result, we will work with you to formally extend vehicles due for renewal to give you a little bit of certainty in these uncertain times.

It means you can keep the vehicles that you know are well looked after – and be certain that you and your employees are able to stay moving.

To request a Formal Extension, please talk to your Account Manager or your customer service team for assistance.

Repairs, maintenance and tyre availability

The current circumstances mean we have also had to make the difficult decision to prioritise services that are most important to the country – and, as a result, we are de-prioritising some non-essential services.

With factory closures, it is likely that spare parts will become increasingly unavailable over the coming months. This is why we are asking our clients and drivers to postpone requests for non-essential services and only ask for critical repairs, vehicle breakdown appointments and legally required inspections.

For example:

  • Cosmetic and small damage repairs
  • Any tyre changes unless they are required by law due to tread depth or other damage
  • Non-critical services and general maintenance

To book in essential services, or if you have any questions about maintaining your vehicle, we ask you to please contact us via our DriverLine number on 0344 493 7659 so we can help manage this difficult period.

Staying informed

We know there will be some difficult times ahead and we want to make sure we are doing everything we can to help you, your organisation and your drivers.

IFS Response to the Coronavirus – Operational Update

Dear Customer,

We recently wrote to you to notify you of our initial activities and plans were regarding the coronavirus situation.

Following the release of the Government’s statement published on Monday 23rd March and the closure of many sites and workplaces around the country, please find below an update on the Operational Services we may provide to your business.

We will update you on the these operational services (and our own provision of services) regularly over the coming weeks and, of course, as and when circumstances change.

We have also launched our Covid-19 Information Hub on our website today, which can be found here.

All future updates will also be available on the hub.

“Business As Usual”

The following services are currently operating as ‘Business as Usual’:

  • Roadside Assistance
  • Daily Rental
  • Tyre Replacement
  • Out of Hours Service

Our third party suppliers in these sectors are classed as providing essential services to customers who are themselves essential service providers. Please follow the usual procedures should you require any of these services.

Please be aware however that it is possible that they may provide a service which is outside of their normal service level response times. The suppliers may have a shortage of staff due to self-isolation or illness.

We will continue to monitor this closely with our suppliers and will provide updates as to the service availability on a regular basis.

Service, Maintenance & Repair

Many dealer groups and independent repairers have closed their doors already as a result of the new government guidelines.

Here at IFS, we are actively contacting any driver that has made a booking through our Premier service to advise of cancellations as a result of these closures.

Drivers will be advised to contact IFS Premier Service at their convenience to rearrange the booking once the government lockdown has lifted.

A small number of repairers will remain open to provide essential service for those vehicles who are operating to provide the essential services on the Government’s list– please contact IFS Premier Service to book your vehicle in for essential repairs should it fall into this category.

MOT’s

Following on from the above, a number of MOT centres are now shut.

The Government has announced a 6 month extension to any MOT’s expiring on or after 30th March 2020.

You do not need to do anything to extend your vehicle’s MOT expiry date if it’s on or after 30 March 2020. However, you must keep your vehicle safe to drive. Your vehicle will be automatically given a 6-month MOT exemption. This will extend your current MOT expiry date by 6 months.

Example:

  • If your vehicle’s MOT was due to expire on 3 April 2020.
  • This will automatically be extended to 3 October 2020. You will need to get your MOT by this date.

Glass

Yesterday our supplier cancelled all appointments whilst they evaluated Government instructions.

Today they will only be providing service to those customers who fall within the definition of essential services, which includes but may not be limited to:-

  • Distribution vehicles used for the distribution of essential products and services
  • Emergency Services vehicles
  • Identified key workers’ vehicles
  • Vehicles in households where the vehicle is required for the mobility or support of vulnerable and dependant people

If you do not fall into this category, please do not contact us to make arrangements to replace or repair your glass until after the current government lockdown.

Accident Management

We continue to operate our service in house for First Notification of Loss.

If a vehicle is involved in an accident and is not driveable, it will be recovered by as per our normal business practices. For driveable vehicles, it is advisable to book repairs once the current travel and isolation restrictions have been lifted. Any vehicle still in progress will be progressed as normal. 

Should we receive notification of a repairer closing, the driver will be informed.

Daily rental can be provided by IFS via your usual booking process if required.  As before, if it is not a service you or your employer currently take from IFS and you have an urgent need for a short term rental vehicle, please do get in touch with us and we can arrange this with you.

Vehicle Movements

All of our current vehicle movement suppliers have ceased operating a collection service (as per Government guidelines they are not classed as essential service providers).  This will have some impact on both end of contract inspections and collections and in life movements will also be cancelled until further notice.

We are planning to contact drivers that are due to be impacted by this closure to advise of the options available to them.  This may also take place at Fleet Manager or corporate contact level.  If a driver is affected by this and would like to contact IFS to discuss, please do so by email in the first instance so that we can leave our available telephone lines free for the most urgent and emergency queries.

Remarketing

All Auction houses are now closed as they do not fall within the Government’s definition of essential services. Therefore we are unable to arrange for the sale of any vehicles until the current period of restriction has lifted.

Contacting IFS

During this very challenging time, and whilst there is a nationwide pressure on networks, please may we remind you of our request for you and your drivers to contact us via email rather than phone. This will enable us to manage inquiries in the most efficient and effective manner during this period. If you have an emergency or very urgent however, please do contact us by telephone.

As always, we thank you for your support and patience during this challenging time.

Kind regards,

Inchcape Fleet Solutions

Vehicle Manufacturers

Skoda

  • Skoda has announced it is suspending production in the Czech Republic starting tomorrow (Wednesday) for two weeks

Mercedes

  • Mercedes has suspended the majority of its production in Europe for an initial period of two weeks;
  • The suspension applies to car, van and commercial vehicle plants in Europe and will start this week;
  • They have said that this is due to global supply chains which currently cannot be maintained to their full extent.

Nissan

  • Nissan has stopped production in Sunderland (Qashqai, Juke and Leaf)

Ford

  • Ford has said they are stopping production at their vehicle and engine production at sites in continental Europe, beginning on Thursday;
  • The sites are in Cologne and Saarlouis in Germany, Craiova in Romania.

Toyota

  • Toyota will be stopping production in Northern France from Wednesday – they produce the Yaris;
  • Their Portuguese operation (Land Cruiser) that exports outside Europe will be also stopping for two weeks;
  • All others will remain open – including Burnaston.

Audi

  • Audi has announced that it will stop production in their plants in Germany, Belgium, and Hungary from next Monday – they are hoping to manage this in a controlled and orderly manner.

Volkswagen

  • VW will suspend production this week at plants in Italy, Portugal, Slovakia, and Spain and is preparing to shut down the rest of its factories across Europe.
  • They are reporting heightened uncertainty regarding parts supplies to plants, production will be suspended in the near future at factories operated by all VW group brands;
  • Production will be halted at their Spanish plants, Portuguese, Bratislava in Slovakia (previously communicated) and the Lamborghini and Ducati plants in Italy before the end of this week.
  • Most of the other German and European plants will begin preparing to suspend production, probably for two weeks.

Renault

  • Renault has said it is shutting down its 12 industrial sites in France from Monday evening “until further notice.”;
  • As per the below emails – Renault has closed factories at Palencia and Valladolid in Spain due to supply shortages – Renault will be not producing for at least two days this week in these factories;
  • The plant at Flins, near Paris, (Renault Zoe electric), was also closed for unrelated supply reasons; and
  • The factories in Slovenia and in Romania (Dacia), Turkey and Morocco also supply Europe. These will be assessed alongside conditions in those countries.

PSA

  • They’re closing all their European factories until March 27;
  • Mulhouse, France and Madrid, Spain, will close on Monday;
  • Poissy, Rennes, and Sochaux in France; Zaragoza, Spain; Eisenach and Ruesselsheim in Germany; Ellesmere Port; and Gliwice, Poland, will halt production on Tuesday;
  • Hordain, France; Vigo, Spain; and Mangualde Portugal, follow on Wednesday; and
  • Luton and, Trnava, Slovakia, will stop production on Thursday.

FCA

  • They have just announced that they are now suspending production at factories in Europe for the next two weeks.
  • Fiat and Maserati factories will stop in Italy until 27th March;
  • Their Serbian (Fiat 500L minivan) and Polish factories (Fiat 500 and Abarth 500) will also close.

Ford

  • Have suspended production in Spain, responsible for the Mondeo and Galaxy.

Seat

  • Suspended production in Spain – not sure yet if it will be days or weeks.

Nissan

  • They are having production challenges as the supply chain is having issues.

Volkswagen Group

  • They are suspending production at a plant in Bratislava, Slovakia, that builds the Porsche Cayenne; VW Touareg; VW Up; Audi Q7; Skoda Citigo and Seat Mii minicars.
  • At their Portuguese factory, they are reducing daily production by 16% – they produce the Seat Alhambra, VW Sharan, and T-Roc

JLR

  • They have stated that their factory in Slovakia (new Defender and the Discovery) continues to operate – despite VW (above) shutting down.
  • There are cases of the virus in the town where the factory is located

The GMP Driver Portal will be regularly updated as more information becomes available.

We appreciate your patience during this challenging time and look forward to us all getting back to normal as soon as possible.

Kind regards,

GMP DRIVERCARE LTD.

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