A poll of UK garages carried out by the Motor Ombudsman has provided an interesting snap shot of where workshops see their businesses heading in the coming years. The Motor Ombudsman reports that many garages are forecasting a perfect storm of rising costs and customers skipping repairs, however, almost half are still planning to make further business investment.  

The annual survey of vehicle repairers, has shown that rising operational costs, taxes and utility bills, are set to be the biggest operational challenge for 89% of garages and workshops this year, up from 75% in 2024

At the same time, with the finances of motorists remaining under strain, 56% of businesses expect consumers to put off essential car repairs to save money in 2025, impacting their bottom line and customer footfall. 

The research also showed that close to half of repairers estimate that they will be paying more for parts to fix vehicles compared to last year, and face ongoing difficulties recruiting qualified technicians to meet demand

Launched in 2022, The Motor Ombudsman’s yearly poll of independent garages and franchise dealer workshops provides an on-the-ground ‘snapshot of sentiment’ of businesses operating in the UK’s service and repair sector

With the service and repair sector relying on qualified technicians to sustain operations and meet customer demand, and a much-publicised skills shortage in this area of the automotive industry, close to half of repairers that were surveyed (48%) said that recruiting personnel would be a hurdle this year. Furthermore, when questioned specifically in relation to staff challenges, the majority (55%), said that they had to raise pay in 2024 to both attract and retain existing employees.

With both new and used electric vehicles increasing in popularity amongst consumers and with fewer mechanical parts than petrol and diesel models, reducing the need for maintenance, around a fifth (21%) of repairers responded in the survey to say that battery-powered cars would provide less scope for additional revenue opportunities, dropping from 26% in last year’s survey, and the high of 32% seen in the same study about expectations ahead of 2023, as more businesses look to diversify income streams.

42% of respondents said they plan to invest in the refurbishment of their premises, with a slightly smaller proportion (39%) stating an intention to grow their workforce. In addition, during 2025, nearly a third (29%) of respondents explained that they are looking to review their opening hours to offer an improved work-life balance to staff, whilst around a quarter (24%) said that they plan to grow their pool of key suppliers to help drive down possible delays to the repair of customer vehicles.