Latest news with #car dealership
CBC
8 hours ago
- Automotive
- CBC
Fire destroys car dealership in Dutton, impacts downtown
A massive fire at a car dealership in Dutton has destroyed the business and forced the closure of part of the southwestern Ontario town's main street. Emergency crews were called to the Cotrac Ford Lincoln dealership on Currie Road just before 10 p.m. ET Wednesday night and found the sales centre at the business fully engulfed in flames, said Don MacLeod, the interim chief administrative officer in Dutton. "It's a nice modern-looking building that's been refurbished, and when I drove in this morning, the structure is virtually destroyed. There's bits and pieces standing, but it looks like a complete loss." Dutton has over 4,000 residents and is southwest of London. The dealership is in the centre of the town, across the street from the building that houses municipal offices, and is an integral part of the community, MacLeod added. "Our thoughts are with all the families that have workers there. We're very grateful that no lives were lost," he said. A 12-unit apartment building west of the dealership was evacuated late Wednesday night because of heavy smoke in the area and the chance that the fire could spread, MacLeod added. Residents who had nowhere to go were sent to the town's community centre and permitted to return home at 5 a.m. Thursday. Fire crews from nearby communities, including West Elgin, Southwold, and Central Elgin, came to help Dutton Dunwich firefighters. "The fire service was able to contain the fire and prevent spread to adjacent structures," MacLeod said.
Wall Street Journal
6 days ago
- General
- Wall Street Journal
Be the Reader You Want to See in the World
I appreciate Meghan Cox Gurdon's 'Put Down the Phone and Pull Out a Book' (op-ed, July 23) and exercise a 'bit of countercultural aggression' myself on occasion. When at the car dealership or medical office I ask those around me if they would object to my turning off the waiting room television so that I may enjoy reading my book. Replies invariably range from 'not at all' to 'please do' to quiet smiles of approval as I turn the TV off. Cynthia Rouvalis
Yahoo
6 days ago
- Automotive
- Yahoo
Fire at Newport News car dealership under investigation
NEWPORT NEWS, Va. (WAVY) — The Newport News Fire Department is investigating an overnight fire at a car dealership. Firefighters responded to a commercial structure fire at Southern Acura Newport News, located in the 12000 block of Jefferson Avenue, at approximately 1:45 a.m. Upon arrival, crews encountered heavy fire and smoke conditions at the commercial building. They then contained the fire and successfully brought it under control. There were no injuries to civilians or firefighters. Fire investigators are working to determine the origin and circumstances surrounding the fire. Continue to check for updates. Copyright 2025 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed. Solve the daily Crossword
The Sun
22-07-2025
- Automotive
- The Sun
Huge UK car dealership in £2million debt after sudden collapse as administrators swoop in
A MAJOR car dealership has fallen into £2million debt after the business fell into administration. Administrators for cash-strapped Marsh Holdings Limited, based in Exeter, Devon, said the firm cannot pay back its unsecured creditors. 2 2 The firm held franchises for the likes of Harley Davidson in Plymouth and Southampton, Triumph in Plymouth and Yamaha in Exeter. The dealership was forced to shut down all five showrooms last December - just months after it sold its Kia franchise to another group. Administrators at Westcotts Business Recovery are currently selling the Triumph and Harley-Davison showrooms at Plymouth for £1.55million which is less than £1.9million estimated market value. A huge portion of the firm's debt will be paid off with that money but the sum will not cover compensation to unsecured creditors. Unpaid debt The dealership's three subsidiaries have a combined debt of £2.3million which will likely go unpaid, according to Car Dealer Magazine. The administrators said: "It is not anticipated that a dividend will be paid to unsecured creditors." The firm owes ££1.161million to NatWest bank which holds security over the Plympton premises. In addition, the business has preferred claims for unpaid salaries and holiday pay totalling an estimated £69,385. Lastly, HM Revenue and Customs is expecting payment of £360,000 for VAT, PAYE and workers' National Insurance. However, an offer of £1.55million has been accepted which will pay in full the outstanding balance at the bank, HMRC and the salaries. Edinburgh Cybersecurity Giant Adarma Collapses with 173 Jobs Lost 'Period of uncertainty in the economy' Just three months prior to the closure, the company reported "strong cash reserves". However, accounts for the group, which were filed at the end of last September, show it made an operating loss of £852,399. Taking into account the £1.2m second payment for the sale of Kia Taunton, it clocked up a profit of just £27,526 for the year, according to Car Dealer Magazine The firm blamed their recent issues on a 'period of uncertainty in the economy' along with continued poor weather, excessive supply and stock from their manufacturer partners, as well as recent budget announcements. A notice on the company's used car website said at the time: 'Sadly, we are devastated to announce that we have had to cease trading with immediate effect. We want to assure you that every possible effort was made to try and avoid this decision, but making it now is the only way we can minimise the impact on all those affected. 'We recognise there will be those of you that have concerns and matters outstanding and we want to assure you we are doing everything we possibly can to resolve these. 'We kindly ask that you are patient whilst we work to ensure these are dealt with quickly.' Company Rescue claims the firm employed 62 people at its showrooms and had a turnover of £30million. The Sun has reached out to Westcotts Business Recovery for a comment.
The Sun
21-07-2025
- Automotive
- The Sun
‘Outstanding' UK car dealership to be BULLDOZED after 50 years of business under new plans
AN 'OUTSTANDING' car dealership is set to be bulldozed after serving customers for 50 years. The space is expected to be completely transformed into a huge two-story shop. 2 2 The former TDI Autos at 3-7 The Parade on the A127 is set to be demolished in the plans. Locals said the garage had been "outstanding" before sadly closing after 50 years. A new retail unit will be installed in the space, across a total of 538 square metres. However, the type of shop moving into the space has not yet been revealed. There will be a 'large commercial floor area', as well as a loading bay and a staff area - according to planning documents. An internal staircase will lead shoppers to a mezzanine area and more retail floorspace. According to planning documents drawn up by Spatial Design Architects, on behalf of the applicant GDI Developments LLP, the pre-application enquiry was submitted on November 2018. After the initial enquiry, pre-application meetings were held with Transport for London (TfL) and planning officers throughout 2024. Planning officers raised concerns about the site's location, saying it could cause 'noise and disturbance' on the already busy A127. Havering Council also put forward a 'comprehensive redevelopment' of the site, which would have seen the neighbouring 1-2 location being regenerated. All UK car dealerships will STOP selling 10,000s of iconic brand's used models impacted by lethal airbag flaw However, the planning statement says that this was not 'currently feasible' for the applicant. TfL raised concerns to ensure that the network was not "compromised" during the planned window for the closure. Spatial Design Architects said in its planning statement that all the concerns had been addressed and that the applicant has plans to ensure "minimal disruption" during construction. Havering Council is expected to make a decision on the application by September 2. Spatial Design Architects has been approached for comment by The Sun. The news comes as car dealerships close their doors across the country, as manufacturers battle rising production costs and international tariffs. With the rise in production costs, the price of buying a car has grown too - leading to declining sales. Marshall Motor Group confirmed that 138 of its stores will close across the UK, after Stallantis UK - the owner of Peugeot and Vauxhall - terminated its contract with the brand. Speaking to The Sun, a source said: 'Staff at all four branches have been told the exact same thing. 'There is a lot of purposefully confusing jargon being thrown around, but essentially they are not renewing the contracts with Stellantis. 'There are roughly 60 people at each location, so we're looking at dozens of jobs being put at risk. 'They didn't give staff any particular reason, it doesn't seem to make much sense to them.'
