Rapidly declining profit margins in new car sales accompanied by the extension of car life render the after-sales business increasingly important.
Iran Standards and Quality Inspection Company announced in its annual report on after-sales services in the past Iranian year (ended March 20, 2015) that the total index of such services experienced a 5% growth vis-à-vis last year, IRNA reports.
The report on 41 automotive suppliers, including 21 import and export companies of lightweight vehicles, reveal that the index of service offered by authorized dealers last year improved by 5% in relation to the previous year, with the light vehicle industry accounting for the major part of the growth.
According to interviews with over 1.2 million customers visiting the after-sales service centers last year, paucity or lack of spare parts and high repair costs charged for low quality services were the top three factors behind car owners' dissatisfaction.
The dealer satisfaction with automotive manufacturers index averaged around 75.9% with a 3.5% hike from the previous year.
Unsatisfactory wages set by the manufacturer and lack of fair incentive systems were among the reasons behind the discontent.
Interestingly, the after-sales services offered by car importing companies last year saw a steady 15.4% growth while the same index stands at 0.6% for domestic manufacturers. However, reduction in production volume and various problems in importing auto parts accelerated the drop significantly.
The report also stated that the average rating of lightweight vehicles grew by 10.8% vis-à-vis the year before, indicating that dealerships have had a rather satisfactory record in field service infrastructure, including equipment, space and discipline.
Additionally, 48% of authorized dealers managed to set in place an effective management system to boost the quality of after-sales services.
