Sunderland car dealer motors off with ‘Garage of the Year’ gong

Sunderland car dealer motors off with ‘Garage of the Year’ gong

/Dealership voted one of 20 most trusted UK garages

                              /Pulman SEAT is focused on offering first-class customer service

                         /Motor Codes’ online garage finder holds over 230,000 online reviews

Leading car retailer Pulman SEAT is celebrating being named as the most trusted main dealer in the North East.

The dealership in Burntland Avenue, Southwick, Sunderland, has been voted the region’s Motor Codes ‘Garage of the Year’.

Chris Slater, Site Manager at Pulman SEAT, said: “This is great news. At Pulman SEAT we are focused on delivering a fantastic customer experience to all our customers so we are thrilled that they have recognised this by voting for us as their number one garage.”

Pulman SEAT was also named as the young-spirited carmaker’s ‘Dealer of the Year’ in January last year for the second year running, even though it had only been trading for two-and-a-half years at the time.

The Motor Codes ‘top 20’ regional Garage of the Year winners are made up of 10 franchised main dealers and 10 independent garages, as nominated by customers of its 8,000-strong garage network.

The garages which made the shortlist – people’s favourite 10 main dealers and 10 independent garages – topped their regions following a month-long competition that generated more than 13,000 online reviews from garage customers.

Motor Codes’ online garage finder holds over 230,000 online reviews and it is this customer feedback that helps direct people to approved garages rather than unscrupulous traders.

Chris Mason, managing director of Motor Codes, sees Garage of the Year as a way of promoting those garages that consistently provide excellent customer service.

He said: “Everybody shops online these days and it’s no different when it comes to looking for a trustworthy garage. By putting themselves in the spotlight and being open to review, Motor Codes garages are helping to boost confidence. People can now make an informed decision about who to trust when it comes to spending on car servicing.”

Motor Codes is the government-backed, self-regulatory body for the motor industry. Its voluntary membership of thousands of garages is committed to maintaining high standards throughout the new car sales process, administration of new car warranties and car service and repair.

SEAT is the only company in its sector with the full-range capacity to design, develop, manufacture and market cars in Spain. A member of the Volkswagen Group, the multinational has its headquarters in Martorell (Barcelona), exporting 83% of its vehicles, and is present in 77 countries. In 2012 SEAT had a total turnover of more than 6 billion euros, with overall deliveries amounting to 321,000 units.

               

SEAT Group employs 14,000 professionals at its three production centres in Barcelona − Zona Franca, El Prat de Llobregat and Martorell, where it manufactures the highly successful Ibiza and Leon, amongst other models. Additionally, the company produces the Alhambra in Palmela (Portugal), the Mii in Bratislava (Slovakia) and the Toledo in Mladá Boleslav (Czech Republic) at Volkswagen Group plants. 

The Spanish multinational also has a Technical Center, a ‘knowledge hub’, bringing together more than 900 engineers whose goal is to be the driving force behind innovation for the number one industrial investor in R&D in Spain. In line with its declared commitment to environmental protection, SEAT undertakes and bases its core activity on sustainability, namely reduction of CO2 emissions, energy efficiency, as well as recycling and re-use of resources.

SEAT UK enjoyed a tremendous year in 2013, selling 45,312 cars and achieving a 2.0% market share – both company records.