Dealers fighting back against Auto Trader price rises

Car dealers are getting fed up with what they see as Autotrader.co.uk exploiting their market dominance by charging far more than their competitors. Auto Trader are seen as the “Google” of used car advertising so it is a big decision to walk away but according to the newly formed MTAU (Motor Traders Advertising Union) many are doing just that.

Boasting over a 1,000 members the MTAU has been set up to give the many disgruntled dealers upset at the recent Auto Trader price increase from £7 to £8.50 per car per week, a voice and possibly a means to negotiate a bulk buyers discount. So far though they are not having much luck as, according to their website, Auto Trader have said a resounding no to their request for a fee of £4.75 for their members.

A post on MTAU’s Facebook page calls Auto Trade “Bully Boys” for forcing through their price rises and it is claimed they are 7 times more expensive than their nearest competitor. Trader Media Group’s claim that they will make £160 million this year rankles with the MTAU and may be regarded by some as profiteering at a time when many dealers are really struggling.

The MTAU reckon around 90 dealers a month are jumping ship from Auto Trader but Trader Media Group deny this. Speaking to the Sunday Times a spokesman from TMG said: “we have engaged with the MTAU even though it is not a recognised industry group” and “no dealers have cancelled”. MTAU’s clear message is that there is an alternative to Auto Trader and dealers should not put up with the prices Auto Trader charge. MTAU’s stated membership adds up to around 10% of the 11,000 dealers TMG say are in their customer base so they may have to engage with MTAU a little more in future. The battle lines have been drawn and it should be an interesting tussle.

We’ll keep you posted.

Iain Ronayne
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    Comments: 4
    1. BC Ford Dealers
      8 years ago

      Nice move by MTAU. Customers would benefit a lot when market dominance is widely distributed rather than being limited to Autotrader alone. Thanks for the update.

    2. Rob
      7 years ago

      Great that people are at last starting to stand up to Autotrader. We can advertise anywhere else for a fraction of what Autotrader now charge. Sales are getting harder each year and other sites are getting better by the day, but the Autotrader still are determined to increase prices each year. With this years increase at £1.50 per car per week, this obviously has nothing to do with them foating the company !

    3. car auction tips
      7 years ago

      Trust me, dealers ARE leaving autotrader, myself included. Unfortunately, AT does not give me the response it used to, and as much as they harp on about dealer portal, I can tell how much enquiry I’m getting by how often the phone rings! In my view, they are too focused on adsense type advertising, but when you are searching for a car and a gumtree banner pops up with examples of what you are looking for, it makes it difficult to justify paying for your adverts

    4. George Anderson
      7 years ago

      Having visited a considerable number of dealers over the past year (approximately 100 in total) we can most certainly confirm that the trade is fed up paying extortionist costs to Autotrader for little in return! Most though feel trapped into advertising with them ‘for fear of loosing out’. At the same time, many now advertise elsewhere…

      Based on our findings we looked at how easy it would be to set up a competitor, paid for by advertising website, to do the same job and came up with UK-Autotrade! This no frills website ‘does what it says it will do in the tin’. Nothing flash about it, it just works…

      It’s a win, win situation for everyone concerned…
      Dealers list for FREE (And always will do) – we get ours from click through advertising!
      It’s a self maintaining website…costs little or nothing to run…no fat cats to milk it dry!

      We’re builders of websites…we’re NOT car dealers so chances are it needs tweaked – could be categories missing and so on! We’re not perfect, but by working together (every dealer looking upon it as their own) with a little two way effort it can sing and dance!

      The more people who use it the more we can do with it….
      We have the SEO software to get it noticed…to make it a real challenger… to give Autotrader a run for its money!
      If it’s something you guys can use…then use it
      Tell others about us…
      We’re here to help…

      George

    Iain Ronayne

    A creative and hardworking professional focused on growing in the field of new media. Enjoying the convergence of my background in IT and the vibrant automotive industry and committed to engaging visitors and growing the Motor Trade Insider brand with unique content and fresh ideas.

    8 years ago News58