Coronavirus Update

COVID-19 update

As new restrictions come into force in England, alongside existing restrictions and tier systems in Wales, Scotland and Northern Ireland, to limit the spread of the Coronavirus, we wanted to provide you with an update of how we’re working at The Motor Ombudsman.

Currently, in line with the latest government guidance for England, we continue to restrict the use of our London office and are, wherever possible, working from home. Our phone lines, case management and email systems all remain open and we are continuing to operate as ‘business-as-usual’ as we can in the circumstances.

 

For consumers

Across the United Kingdom, there are a variety of rules and restrictions in place. Most of these mean that service and repair outlets are considered essential services, so garages, dealers and MOT stations – can remain open for service, repairs and MOTs. However, many businesses are operating at reduced capacity, with staff on furlough, and others may be completely closed.

This means that we may experience delays in investigating and resolving complaints: if a business is closed, then we’re not going to be able to get the information we need right now, and if they’re open but with limited staff or focussed on essential repair work, we’ll probably need to give them more time to respond to us.

We fully understand the difficulties faced by many during these unprecedented and uncertain times, and if you require any additional support about a case you have with us, please just let us know. You can find our contact details here.

For further information on the restrictions in your area, please visit:

England 

Wales 

Scotland

Northern Ireland

COVID-19 Knowledge Base

We’ve updated our Knowledge Base to include a range of questions and answers relating to car care and any possible issues relating to the coronavirus crisis.

You can access the Knowledge Base here.

Support for businesses

To help garages, dealers and other businesses navigate these more challenging times, we have brought together some useful coronavirus support resources on one page where you can view links to information on financial support from the government, employer guidance and updates on the MOT extension.

Visit our business support page here.