Motor Trade Legal Articles
Redundancy Consultation
It is established law that when deciding on a proposed pool for selection in redundancy, employers have a reasonable degree of latitude. Case law generally supports the fact that provided the employer has applied its mind to the selection pool, and the proposed pool is reasonable, then Tribunals should not really be disturbing that reasonable view […]
Motoring Offences, PCNs and Parking Fines
As a motoring business if you lend out courtesy cars there will be times when those cars incur fines, parking charges, Penalty Charge Notices (PCN’s) or even criminal motoring offences such as speeding. It is important that members are familiar with issues raised by each of the above and the different duties that are required […]
Mixed Contracts; Supplying And Fitting Parts
There has always been some debate regarding the rules that govern contracts that deal with both the supply of goods and the supply of services, i.e. the supply and fitting of parts to a vehicle. If a member supplied and fitted goods to a vehicle is that a contract for goods, a contract for services […]
Business Rates
Business rates are currently a fact of life and can represent a large percentage of regular business outgoings. Unfortunately, these have likely gone up from 1 April 2024. Here is what you need to know. Background All business properties have a ‘rateable value’ assigned to it by the Valuation Office Agency (VOA), who are part […]
Signed Contracts of Employment
Is it a legal requirement to require employees to sign an acknowledgement that they have read and understood the HR policies that apply to them? If so, is an electronic signature from the employee sufficient? Under Section 1(1) Employment Rights Acts 1996 an employer is required to give a worker a written statement of the […]
Digital Markets, Competition and Consumers Act
Sarah Cardell, the Chief Executive of the Competition and Markets Authority (“CMA”) has heralded the new Digital Markets, Competition and Consumers Act (“DMCC”) as “a watershed moment in the way we protect consumers in the UK and the way we ensure digital markets work for the UK economy.” The DMCC became law on 24 May […]
Covert Recordings
“I held a disciplinary meeting with one of my employees last week and, having sent him the notes I made, he has now revealed that he covertly recorded the meeting and says that he contests my record of the meeting. Is there anything I can do to stop this?” Covert recording is an increasingly common […]
Is Reasonableness in the Eye of the Beholder? New Guidance on a Reasonable Deduction for Use
Let’s face it, vehicles don’t always work. Sometimes, like it or not, a customer has a legitimate right to reject. For this short post in MILS Matters, we’ll set aside the thorny question of what makes a rejection legitimate and focus instead on the perennially challenging but imminently practical next question: how much can a […]
Satisfactory Quality
“I have recently supplied and fitted a gearbox to a customer’s vehicle. The manufacturer put a 12 month warranty on it. It has now failed again 2 years later and the customer is saying I am liable.” The Consumer Rights Act 2015 (CRA) require that any parts to be supplied are of Satisfactory Quality (s9). […]
Discrimination arising from a disability
One of the common difficulties within the workplace is managing employees with significant medical conditions. Since the pandemic there has been a rise in cases of stress and anxiety within the workplace, which, if sufficiently serious may be a disability for the purpose of employment law. Employers are often reluctant to engage with such conditions […]