Motor Trader

[mad mike]

I am a UK based Motor Trader. I buy and sell between auctions and occasionally retail. How would I fair transferring my business to France. Or perhaps working in UK and living in France. Do French people buy second hand cars. Advice please.

[Nick Trollope]

I guess that the motor trade here works much the same as it does in the UK, but prices are much higher, there is VAT on (some of the price) of a S/H car and there are much fewer "plots" (around here at least) and guarantees from professional traders are required & stringent.

I have to wonder why most of secondhand car sales are left to main dealers, private ads or specialist traders (4x4, vans, MPV's etc).

Don't ask about starting any business in France!

[mad mike]

Interesting? I have noticed that at certain UK car auctions there are french buyers. Perhaps there is a market for supplying RHD cars or are they buying LHD. Also, what do UK expats do with RHD cars they no longer require while in France. I realise that unless you are in the trade these questions may be difficult to answer, is there a trade resource I could tap into.

Cheers

[Anton Redman]

<< Also, what do UK expats do with RHD cars they no longer require while in France. >> 

If you check through French News at least one dealer buys French registered RHD and re exports to the UK but limited to low mileage and under 4 years old. Also have a read through the Fact Sheet on importation on TotalFrance.

[mad mike]

If used cars are expensive in France, what about buying LHD in UK and re-registering in France. Would that work?

 

[Anton Redman]

[quote user="mad mike"]  If used cars are expensive in France, what about buying LHD in UK and re-registering in France. Would that work?  [/quote]

Have a look at the Motoring in France section and read about people trying to sell RHD. When I lived in the UK the only LHD cars I considered were fast Golfs, BMWs etc which were never officially imported to UK. Just prior to moving I had a look at the second hand French cars on the local science park.

The average French person would never consider RHD although somebody had some luck with a GPL Range Rover. There used to be a small garage outside Perigeaux which imported second hand fom Germany but they gave up about two years ago.

[Patf]

We bought our LHD Renault Laguna from a dealer in UK, at the same time trading in our RHD Ford Escort.. It had belonged to someone who bought and drove it in France then returned to UK. No problem re-registering it in France. No idea if we got it at a bargain price though. Pat.

[Nick Trollope]

As far as I can tell, LHD cars now carry a premium in the UK!

What's more, you will get more for a French registered car (in the UK) on UK eBay, than you will on French eBay or a French private ad. Bizarre!

[Sunday Driver]

[quote user="mad mike"]I am a UK based Motor Trader. I buy and sell between auctions and occasionally retail. How would I fair transferring my business to France. Or perhaps working in UK and living in France. Do French people buy second hand cars. Advice please.
[/quote]

Buying and selling cars (or indeed anything) is the same in France as in the UK.  French people really do buy second hand cars - what do you think happens to older cars when people come to buy a new one? 

Transferring any business to France is complex and above all, expensive.  Reckon on paying a large slice of your revenue in taxes, healthcare and social security charges. You really need to take the time to sit down and read the other threads in this forum section to find out more information about this.

Relying on buying the odd RHD car from expat Brits (who may well be pricing their vehicle in order to recoup some of their original import costs) is unlikely to be enough to put bread on your table - so you will probably need to sell to the French market and if you do not speak French, then you will find things very difficult. 

Regarding the pros and cons about relative car prices suggested so far, it's your stock in trade, so it's up to you to do your own research on this.

No offence, Mike, but I have to say that your original query appears to be a touch naive and if you have been successful in the UK motor trade so far, then I wonder if the gigantic leap of establishing a business in a foreign country is really for you.

 

 

[mad mike]

My original post was written to attract the opinions of those not involved in the trade. I have found over the years that the best way to acquire information is to talk to people. I am not expecting anyone to write a business plan or do a feasibility study. I am not "touting" for business. I am just using the forum for an open and frank exchange of views and opinions. It is human nature to wonder and think what if. Also, don't worry I am not offended by being called naive, I have been called a lot worse; even by my bank manager; although he has held my account for over 15 years.

 

 

 

[Will]

Had you thought of this three or four years ago, you might have made a killing. There were a couple of specialist LHD dealers in Britain but normally you could pick up private LHD sales for peanuts and if a dealer took one in part exchange he'd knock it out cheap just to get rid of it. A few of us struck lucky, taking the odd LHD banger to France, putting a lot of km on it and then getting a generous (by British standards) part exchange, making us wish we'd brought a couple more cars over. But now it has changed. Dealers are wise to the demand for LHD in Britain, and the private sector has caught up too, thanks to Ebay. Just do a search for LHD on Ebay and you'll see the silly money they fetch at present. Unfortunately it's not a two-way traffic. RHD in mainland Europe is still near-worthless. One company (Owl Trading) buys RHD in France to send back to Britain, but I don't think they are getting particularly rich.

And there are still potential hurdles. Non-European LHD vehicles can be a nightmare to register in France. There may be some mileage in buying second-hand in Germany or Belgium, registering and selling on in France, but if that was so profitable then more French dealers would be doing it (there are a couple). No, I'm nothing personally to do with the trade, though I come from a family that was, so I have some understanding but little knowledge.