Kevin Toms of FRL Autoservices in Top 5

photo courtesy of FRL Autoservices

Kevin Toms from Blackawton has made it to the Final 5 of the the industry's prestigious Top Technician competition in the UK.
The Top Technician competition began in 2002 to find the UK's most skilled automotive technicians and to highlight areas of training. 

Kevin works for Good Garage Scheme member garage, FRL Autoservices in Dartmmouth, where he has been for 32 years. He is a local lad who has worked his entire life with engines of all sorts, from lawn mowers to lorries, tractors to Teslas and has now battled his way through the heats of this prestigious award to the final five.

Out of thousands of entries, Kevin was whittled down from the last 250 to 20 by a series of tougher tests, the last 10 were then invited to the practical semi-final in Bournemouth on Thursday 11th May 2017. They were put through a series of tasks with a twenty minute time limit. The five technicians with the highest score move forward to the next stage in Warwickshire on July 13th  with the final live event in Daventry on September 16th.

He has been overwhelmed that he has got this far. Having previously reached the top 50, he can’t quite believe it. Owner of FRL Autoservices, Ian Gobel and all of the staff, family, friends and customers are all so proud of Kevin and wish him all the luck for the final.

The Good Garage Scheme would also like to wish Kevin the very best of luck as he proceeds to the semi-final round.

Say Hello to Miles Better

Thank you to all who participated in our “Name Our Star” competition.
 
We invited all Good Garage Scheme members, staff and our followers on Facebook and Twitter to come up with a name for the new star of our TV advertising campaign. We had some great suggestions including Gary Toogood, Frank, Carter Fix, Harry,  Mike the Mechanic and even a Tarquin, but the popular choice was Miles Better.

Congratulations to Heidi Twigg, whose husband owns MT Cars Ltd in Whittlesey. MT Cars has been a member of the Good Garage Scheme since 2007 and has a five star feedback rating. Heidi came up with the name and won a free tank of fuel for her creative name.

Colin Austen presents cheque to Heidi Twigg.  Also in photo: Mark Twigg, Chris Simpson and Kim Vawser

Miles Better will next appear on SKY television in June during the Good Garage Scheme's next national television campaign helping to spread the message, "It's like having a friend in the know!"

Follow Miles on Facebook here and also on Twitter: @MilesBetter_GGS

Lorraine Kelly Competition is Win-Win!

A chance competition entry in At Home With Lorraine Kelly, Lorraine Kelly’s online magazine, has won a lucky Nottingham-based motorist an iPod Touch and introduced him to his local Good Garage Scheme member garage.

Rachel Greasby, General Manager of the Good Garage Scheme presents prize to Chris Veevers at Professional Vehicle Servicing in Nottingham. (Left to right: Richard Craven, Rachel Greasby, Chris Veevers, Richard Conduit)

Chris Veevers isn’t the sort of person who regularly enters online competitions but upon seeing the prize, decided to give it a go. To his surprise, Chris was chosen over 8,000 entrants as the winner and was awarded with his prize at his local Good Garage Scheme member garage, Professional Vehicle Servicing in Nottingham.

“An iPod Touch is an expensive piece of equipment so it’s probably not something I would buy myself. Since winning one though, it has become a frequently used possession. I use it to surf the web at home and have downloaded quite a few apps. I also use it to access the Good Garage Scheme Facebook page and stay up to date with their most rated garages and driving tips.”

As well as winning an iPod Touch, the competition also served to familiarise Chris with the Good Garage Scheme. “I didn’t know much about the Good Garage Scheme before I entered this competition, but I know a lot more now and regularly visit their website. As a motorist, I find their driving tips very handy. I also like their member feedback system. It’s one thing listening to a garage telling you how great they are, but when you see the feedback from other customers you actually believe it for yourself. Since winning this competition I am definitely more familiar with the Good Garage Scheme and plan on using Professional Vehicle Servicing in the future.” 

Professional Vehicle Servcing, Nottingham

Anndi Sheppard, Marketing Manager for the Good Garage Scheme commented: “I am delighted that over 8,000 people have been introduced to the Good Garage Scheme through Lorraine Kelly’s popular magazine and that Mr Veevers now knows where he can take his car the next time he needs a service or repair.”

To find your nearest Good Garage Scheme member, visit www.GoodGarageScheme.com and enter your postcode or town name. It’s like having a friend in the know!

A star is born…Please help us name him

We are proud to introduce a new member of the Good Garage Scheme team.

He will be appearing in our brand new television marketing campaign due to start in March on SKY and DAVE TV.

We're looking for a name for our new star. Please help us give him a great name, and if your suggestion is chosen you could win a Free Tank of Fuel*.

If you wish to enter please send your suggestion, your name and a contact email address and telephone number to marketing@goodgaragescheme.co.uk.

All entries must be received by 31st March. Any received after this date will not be considered. *worth up to £70

In the event that the winning entry is suggested by more than one person, all entries with the same name will be placed in an envelope and one winner will be drawn.

For further information about the competition visit http://www.goodgaragescheme.co.uk/chappie

Good Garage Scheme Celebrates Half a Million Feedbacks!

On Thursday, 2^nd February, the 500,000^th customer feedback was entered on the Good Garage Scheme’s website.  The lucky customer will soon be confirmed and rewarded with the promised Free Tank of Fuel to celebrate the impressive landmark.
 
The feedback system is at the heart of the Good Garage Scheme. In fact, over 8000 feedbacks are received each month. This information helps new customers search the website and decide on a Good Garage Scheme member to service, repair or carry out an MOT on their vehicle.
 

There are now three options for a customer to leave feedback on the service received.  They can fill in a feedback card, enter feedback online or enter feedback via the Good Garage Scheme app.

 
We will post more detail about the winner of the free fuel soon. In the meantime, have a look at this week’s Top Good Garage Scheme Feedback.

Nintendo Wii Awarded to Latest Feedback Winner

One motorist got more than they bargained for when taking part in the Good Garage Scheme’s nationwide garage feedback winter prize draw. Alison Palmer is the lucky winner of a Nintendo Wii home video game console, having been drawn from over 25,000 feedback forms received by the Good Garage Scheme over the past three months.

As a long-standing customer of Good Garage Scheme member, NRK Services in Somerset, Alison wanted to express her satisfaction of over 15 years of good service by letting them and the Good Garage Scheme know of her thoughts.

On hearing of her win, Alison commented: “I was really shocked and delighted at the news, because I wasn’t aware of a prize at all. I just wanted to put into writing how happy I was with my garage and the feedback system is a great way of doing that"

She added: “The mechanics at NRK are very helpful and save me as much money as possible by avoiding unnecessary work on my old car. They are a trustworthy garage and I will always go back to them.”

Good Garage Scheme customers are encouraged to provide feedback to garages so that visitors to the website can make an educated decision when choosing a garage to service or repair their vehicle.

Since becoming a member in 2006, NRK Services have maintained a five star rating and 100% of their customers have said they would visit again.

Neil Kelly, owner of NRK Services said: “The Good Garage Scheme customer feedback system really helps promote good independent garages to the public. The fact that the Good Garage Scheme further incentivises motorists to officially pass on their comments to help other motorists is the icing on the cake for us".

To find a Good Garage Scheme member in your area, please click here.

Photo: Handover of Nintendo Wii to Ms Palmer by Neil (Ned) Kelly.