ILC ARTICLE

GTA announces interim rates agreement

4th October 2022

Motor Insurers and credit hire companies have signed an interim agreement to increase certain hire rates.

The agreement, which applies to subscribers to industry protocol GTA and will remain in place until 30 June, is expected to ease the financial pressures caused by current headwinds by seeing credit hire companies accepting lower average hire rates in return for faster payments.

Anthony Hughes, Chairman and CEO of the Credit Hire Organisation (CHO) which represents the UK credit hire sector, said the interim agreement will enable customers to continue to access mobility while their own vehicle is off the road following an accident.

He said, “Our members have been significantly affected by bottlenecks in the supply chain, including access to vehicles, a tightening in the supply of new vehicles and across the board hikes in hire rates which weren’t reflected in the GTA.

“A compromise will never tick the boxes for all our members, and I know that this has been a tough process, but we feel this interim deal will at least ease some of the pressure on our members and reduce the risk that customers would struggle to access the mobility they need.”

Steve Hiscock, who leads the motor insurers group on the GTA, said: “I’m pleased we’ve been able to come to an agreement for the benefit of our customers. It underlines the value of the GTA as a means of achieving a consensus approach to these significant challenges through cooperation and compromise.

“It is important that we build on this temporary arrangement during the next few months to put in place a GTA that is able to meet the challenges posed by the rapidly changing environment in our sector.” 

The GTA is also now undergoing a revision to ensure it remains fit for purpose going forward

Anthony added: “I hope the spirit of cooperation between credit hire companies and motor insurers that appeared during the pandemic, and now has resulted in the interim agreement on rates, can continue through the next series of discussions to re-boot the GTA. Self-regulation in the credit hire sector remains the most appropriate means of making sure the needs of customers requiring mobility are met.”