Highest ever attendance for VRA meeting

Almost 50 people attended last week’s Vehicle Remarketing Association member meeting in what the organisation described as a “sign of the current, increased interest in remarketing.” Held at the premises of GEFCO in Coventry, the event covered the latest developments in leasing company remarketing. VRA members together are involved in handling, selling, inspecting, transporting or managing more than 1.5 million used vehicles every year.

Sam Watkins, chair at the VRA, said: “There has been growing momentum behind the VRA for some time now with increased membership and a higher profile for the organisation. “We also see this very much as a sign of the current, increased interest in remarketing generally from right across all different sectors of the motor industry. At a point in time when maximising value from existing assets is crucial against a backdrop of ongoing economic uncertainty, there is very much a renewed focus on remarketing. The VRA is able to provide a high level of support to organisations and individuals, and our regular member meetings are invaluable in delivering timely updates on industry trends.”

Key presentations at the meeting included Dean Bowkett of Bowkett Consulting on high level developments in the leasing sector, Paul Harrison of Leasing.com on issues affecting online business and personal leasing, Nigel Dann of vehicle credit management specialist Anglia UK on changing attitudes towards vehicle termination, collection and damage, and Derren Martin of CAP HPI on the latest developments in the new and used car market.

Watkins said that the VRA had worked hard on the quality of the information presented at member meetings to ensure that they were genuinely useful to remarketing professionals.

“What we try and do at each meeting is not just throw together disparate pieces of material, but construct a narrative that we believe helps our members understand key developments in the remarketing sector.”

She added that the VRA had created a complete programme of member meetings for this year that was designed to keep members well-informed about a wide range of crucial industry topics.

“We’ll be looking at everything from Brexit to the latest developments in fulfilment, from manufacturer direct sales to new legislation. This is proving to be a really busy year in remarketing and the support that the VRA provides to its members will be invaluable.”