8 March 2020
The key points of the update:
1. Whilst our focus is on the health and safety of our contractors, a number of our temporary vehicle technicians and MOT testers continue to operate throughout the country and are eager to support workshops that remain open
2. Many of our clients have already started planning for the future after the shutdown and we encourage you to do the same
3. We are planning a few web seminars with industry experts on various topics around the automotive industry and what future might hold for the motor trade in the UK
Please remember, our goal is to support you through those challenging days and beyond so don't hesitate to contact us if you have any questions.
As always, thank you for being our client and for your continued trust as we manage through this time together.
With best wishes,
The Autotech Recruit team
27 March 2020
We are currently working on understanding the finer details of these support schemes and are talking to the umbrella payment companies and tax and employment law specialists. It is extremely important that we are able to provide all our contractors with the correct information.
We will be sending comprehensive communication with regard to the Chancellor's announcements to all our contractors as soon as possible.
In the meantime, if you would like to do some self-reading, we have collated a list of links that you might find useful:
Watch the ITV's Martin Lewis Money Show - Coronavirus special
https://www.itv.com/hub/the-martin-lewis-money-show-a-coronavirus-special/7a0222a0002
Coronavirus: What help will self-employed get from government?
https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/business-52052123
Q&A for self-employed from Martin Lewis of MoneySavingExpert
https://www.moneysavingexpert.com/news/2020/03/chancellor-announces-help-for-self-employed/
Coronavirus: Financial help and rights
https://www.moneysavingexpert.com/news/2020/03/uk-coronavirus-help-and-your-rights/
We will be in touch as soon as we have more updates.
25 March 2020
As 25% of the world’s population goes into lockdown, it comes as no surprise that the current crisis has affected all of us, not just personally but also as a business.
We are sure you are concerned, which is why I am writing to let you know about the actions Autotech Recruit is taking in the current situation.
With thousands of garages already announcing their temporary closure and after today’s announcement about the extension of MOT tests by 6 months, it became clear that the contract work opportunities we will be able to offer in the coming weeks will be extremely limited.
That is why our team are currently putting all our efforts into understanding how we can accelerate the Government’s financial aid for all of our contractors, both those operating as limited companies and through umbrella payment.
When we say that our contractors and employees are at the heart of everything we do these are not just empty words and nothing is changing in that respect. It is our paramount objective to ensure you get what you are rightfully owed.
What do we know so far?
- The Chancellor will be announcing the package for self-employed tomorrow:Â https://www.ftadviser.com/your-industry/2020/03/25/covid-19-update-for-self-employed-confirmed-for-tomorrow/
- The House of Commons Public Bill Committee have published a proposed amendment to the Coronavirus Bill which, once approved, will give freelancers and self-employed people a guaranteed income of 80% of their monthly net earnings, averaged over the last three years; or £2,917 per month, whichever is lower: https://publications.parliament.uk/pa/bills/cbill/58-01/0122/amend/coronavirus_daily_cwh_0320rev.14-18.html
- Martin Lewis of MoneySavingExpert urges self-employed to stay calm.:Â https://twitter.com/MartinSLewis/status/1242385553452150785?s=20
- Garages/service departments are considered essential businesses and can remain open, however, in reality the majority of them will temporarily close for business:Â https://www.auto-retail.co.uk/agenda/garages-confirmed-as-essential-businesses/
- From 30 March 2020, MOT due dates for cars, motorcycles and light vans will be extended by 6 months:Â https://www.gov.uk/guidance/coronavirus-covid-19-mots-for-cars-vans-and-motorcycles-due-before-30-march-2020
Again, thank you for all your support in this testing time and I assure you we will eventually come out the other side of this in a better place, with lots of different opportunities ahead of us.
We will be in touch as soon as we have more updates.
24 March 2020
We are sure you are all aware of last night's announcement by the Prime Minister of a wide shut down of businesses in the UK due to the stepping up of measures in the country's fight with the spread of coronavirus.
He was very clear that all non-essential travel is banned.
However, travel to work is allowed if a business you are working for is permitted to carry on.
Whilst car showrooms have to close, garages/service departments are allowed to remain open. See page 3, Section: Retail of Guidance: Further businesses and premises to close.
To be clear, if you worked with Autotech Recruit last week, you will be paid as usual on Friday, 27 March 2020.
Autotech Recruit's management team is currently seeking clarification on the financial aid our contractors are entitled to and we will communicate it to you as soon as it is clear and support you with any help you need.
We are in the process of contacting all of our active contractors. If we haven't spoken to you already, we will be in contact shortly to seek your views regarding continuing to work. You are under no obligation to work, we merely wish to understand your position.
We are also contacting all our clients, seeking to ascertain if they wish to continue with their bookings over the next 3 weeks.
We would like to reassure everyone involved, we are operating as normal and doing everything we can to help.
If you have any questions, please don't hesitate to contact us (including out of hours) and we will attempt to answer as many questions and queries as we can.
We are here to support you at this difficult time.
Kind regards,
Gavin White
CEO
3 June 2020
Like many other businesses in the UK, our company has not been immune to the current situation. As the majority of garages have either remained closed or maintained very low levels of operations throughout the lockdown, understandably, their need for temporary cover decreased too.
We have worked on skeleton staff for a few weeks, but we believe we have used this time wisely and to our clients and contractors’ future benefit. We have been keeping our News section up to date - please click here for all the latest information about the company.
As the lockdown restrictions are slowly being eased, we are here, ready to help dealerships and independent garages manage the predicted influx in MOT and servicing bookings by providing vetted and experienced temporary workshop staff.