Bodyshop claims notifications have dropped by over 70% in the wake of the coronavirus lock-down with almost half having suspended trading (49.1%) with more expected to follow (24.3%).

The findings follow a week-long bodyshop survey carried out by Trend Tracker, in partnership with ARC360 and the National Body Repairers Association.

Despite the crisis, 77.9% of bodyshops were either ‘cautiously’ or ‘very’ optimistic they could withstand the financial impact of a two-month lockdown, with 80.7% ‘cautiously’ or ‘very’ confident their business would be stronger in the second half of the year, assuming the coronavirus crisis has passed.

The survey also showed that 82.9% had experienced disruption to the supply of OEM parts, mainly due to key agents closing down. However, roughly half said they had experienced no issues at all regarding the supply of paint and materials (45.9%), aftermarket parts (45.2%), and green parts (52.6%).

In terms of staffing levels, the survey found that only 14% had retained its entire workforce on full pay, with 64.7% saying employees had been Furloughed.

Chris Weeks, executive director, NBRA, commented: “For many of our members this is a fight for survival, and they need immediate and significant support to get through it. This survey should leave no one in any doubt about the severity of the situation; the NBRA will use the results to inform its next steps to ensure we’re helping our members in the best way possible.”

Mark Hadaway, ARC360 co-founder, said, “While these are extremely testing times, it’s hugely positive to note the percentage of bodyshops that remain optimistic. It underlines the incredible resilience within this sector and suggests that it might not be too long until repairers are back doing what they do best – supporting people during a time of need and putting them back on the road safely.”

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