Vertu in the profits fast lane as car buyers return

The car market is thriving, the consumer is "alive and well" and more buyers are able to get credit, the bullish boss of motor retailer Vertu Motors said today.

Robert Forrester, chief executive of Vertu, said: "Everybody thinks the consumer is dead, but our volumes, with new and used-car sales up more than 6%, show that's not true.

"We had a used-car event this weekend, and we sold more cars than we've sold ever at one before. The South of England is more robust than the North."

Forrester said trading for the year now looked like it would beat expectations, in part because the credit market was "easing".

He added: "The percentage of finance rejections is down 3% over the last six months. That small percentage increase can make a big difference on the volumes we deal with."

Vertu posted a 24% rise in pre-tax profit to £5.2 million on sales of £511.1 million for the six months to September.

Three and a half years since its flotation, it gave investors news of a maiden dividend, 0.2p per share, to be paid in January.

Forrester brushed aside any fears over January's VAT increase. "Over the past two years, new car prices have increased 22%, I'm sanguine about the 2.5% VAT hike. It pales into insignificance," he said.