The UK’s principal recovery associations are to join forces to set up a new company to bid for contracts from police forces and the Highways Agency. The new organisation will be known as FOVRA (Federation of Vehicle Recovery Associations) and aims to improve contractual terms for members.
The move is the first step in a fight back against ‘call handling’ companies that FOVRA states are driving its members out of business through profiteering.
A spokesman from the Federation said, “The call handling companies who currently hold these contracts are already making substantial profits.
“But they are now squeezing our members’ margins so tightly that some are running at a loss or even going out of business.
“This intolerable situation cannot be allowed to continue, so, in the interests of our members, we have united to form our own company to bid for the contracts.”
FOVRA plans to win business directly from police forces and the Highways Agency by competing with firms currently holding these contracts.
At the moment, call handling companies sub-contract recovery operations to vehicle recovery firms including members of the organisations involved in FOVRA. The Federation’s membership currently consists of AVRO (Association of Vehicle Recovery Operators), RRRA (Road Rescue Recovery Association) and SVRA (Scottish Vehicle Recovery Association).
FOVRA states that it will only cover its running costs while handing the rest of the money to the operators involved. The spokesman added, “If things remain as they are everyone may lose out because the call handlers’ actions could result in fewer and fewer recovery operators and a resultant fall in standards. Our fear is that this would not be in the interests of a competitive market, which works in the interests of the contract holder, firms involved or the customer.”
