Being nr. 1 on the car market didn’t prevent D’Ieteren from launching a groundbreaking service to tackle the ongoing problems around C2C car selling

Founded in 1805 almost 200 years ago, D’Ieteren is the largest car distributor in Belgium with a market share that rises above 22%: all vehicles belonging to the brands Audi, Cupra, Seat, Skoda & Volkswagen are sold through D’Ieteren’s extensive dealership network, whether it concerns new or used cars. The latter are furthermore regrouped within the certified used car label My Way, with D’Ieteren selling such used cars to end consumers through a traditional B2C model.

However, with around 40% of the used cars transactions being handled directly between private individuals, My Way felt excluded from the C2C market and was willing to find a way to come up with an innovative response that would combine:

• Customer retention: making sure that a person willing to sell his/her Audi, Cupra, Seat, Skoda or Volkswagen vehicle himself/herself could do so in a secure way, especially when it comes to the effective payment of the car, hence satisfying such customer
• Customer acquisition: currently, if an individual sells his/her car directly to another individual, then D’Ieteren has no means of knowing who that buyer is, hence is unable to propose that individual its range of maintenance & repair services

This is how SereniMax came up with the idea of extending its own B2C services sold on the www.SereniMax.co website to the B2B2C arena, in order to let My Way propose an innovative solution that would allow them to step into the C2C car selling segment: after months of hard work, My Way Trust & Deal www.trustanddeal.be was successfully launched last Tuesday. ?

How does Trust & Deal work? It’s an app, and it’s easy as 1 2 3:

1. Using his/her smartphone, the car seller firstly needs to make an appointment with a garage that belongs to D’Ieteren’s extensive network, in order to have his/her car examined: if this pre-purchase inspection is positive, then the car will be granted with a quality label that the seller will later use in his/her adverts, and will be eligible for a warranty (repair cost insurance coverage)
2. Shortly after, the seller will prepare the advert by taking a few pictures of the car: each of these pictures will be stamped & labelled with the My Way Trust & Deal logo, therefore giving potential buyers an immediate information that this is not just “a” car, but a quality vehicle; the buyer will then post the advert on one or several car verticals such as 2ememain.be, GoCar.be, Vroom or Facebook Marketplace.
3. Once a buyer is interested in the car, both parties will use their (own) smartphone to sign the digital version of the car sale contract, and the buyer will pay via the app, a small deposit to further shows his/her willingness to effectively buy the car ?
4. Thereafter, he/will wire the balance on an escrow account, pretty much like the buyer of a house would wire such balance to a notary, with the funds being released only when the buyer is remitted with the house keys: here, the balance stays on the buyer’s escrow account, and will be released only when the car is effectively handed over to him/her: the payment is 100% secure, for both parties
5. At that moment, not only the buyer will get the car itself, but the latter will immediately and automatically be covered by a repair cost insurance, which is almost identical to a mechanical warranty

The end result is positive for all parties:

• The seller sold the car in a totally secure way, and earned more than if the car had been sold through a trade-in to a professional vendor
• The buyer, while paying much less that if the car had been bought at a professional vendor, enjoys a total peace of mind since the car is covered by the repair cost insurance
• The dealership has made a direct revenue with the pre-purchase inspection and if the latter was not immediately positive, has made additional revenues by making the necessary repairs in order to have the car eventually pass the inspection; the dealership will also make additional revenues since the car buyer will most probably have his newly acquired vehicle maintained & possibly repaired at that very dealership ?
• Last but not least, My Way has made a direct revenue of 249€ by providing these services ?

What follows is the official press release of?My Way to announce the launch of Trust & Deal:

Date: 30/11/2021

MyWay launches a new platform to help consumers buy and sell used vehicles safely and securely

MyWay has launched Trust & Deal, a new platform that guides consumers through the entire process of safely and securely buying and selling used Volkswagen Group vehicles – from placing an attractive advert to providing a six-month warranty and secure payments.

The used vehicle market is changing rapidly and the number of transactions between consumers should at the very least remain steady for many years to come. However, buying and selling used vehicles can sometimes mean unpleasant surprises – from a vehicle in poor condition to an unreliable transaction.

With its new Trust & Deal platform (www.trustanddeal.be), MyWay Certified used cars enables consumers to avoid these risks so they can buy and sell used vehicles* (Volkswagen, SEAT, CUPRA, ?KODA and Volkswagen Commercial Vehicles marques only) not only with confidence, but also with professional guidance and support.

Using the app, the seller contacts the official Volkswagen, SEAT, CUPRA, ?KODA or Volkswagen Commercial Vehicles dealer of his choice. The dealer examines the vehicle and prepares it for the technical inspection required for resale to a private customer (€49 including VAT for the inspection, which does not include any replacement parts or other necessary work). If repairs are needed, the certificate will be issued once they are completed. This means the buyer benefits from a warranty on parts and labour recognised by the official network of dealers for that marque in Belgium.

The seller then follows the steps on the MyWay Trust & Deal platform to create his advert and publish it on his favourite used car sites. The MyWay Trust & Deal logo and warranty will appear on every photo he uploads, enhancing the vehicle's value and maximising the chances of a quick sale at the best price. The sales price includes a six-month warranty for the buyer.

When a buyer expresses an interest in the car, he will be invited to register on the MyWay Trust & Deal platform in order to finalise the transaction after signing the standard sales contract and approving the warranty contract for the vehicle. The funds are transferred securely via the app when the keys are handed over. Once the sale has been finalised, the seller pays a flat fee of €249 (including VAT).

With Trust & Deal, MyWay provides a service that enables consumers to buy and sell used cars safely and securely.

*Only for the following marques: Volkswagen, SEAT, CUPRA, ?KODA and Volkswagen Commercial Vehicles. Vehicles must be no more than eight years old and must have no more than 150,000 km on the odometer when the keys are handed over to the buyer.

Website: www.trustanddeal.be

MyWay contact: Walter Van Schevensteen – Used Car Manager – [email protected]

D’Ieteren contact: Jean-Marc Ponteville – Press & Public Relations – [email protected]