A LONGSTANDING car dealership shut six locations across the UK in its biggest-ever round of closures after axing 250 jobs

Evans Halshaw has confirmed a fresh wave of dealership closures as its American owner, Lithia, continues to downsize its UK operations.

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Six sites are set to shut down, marking one of the biggest rounds of cuts since Lithia took over the company last year.

The closures include three ‘direct pod’ locations in St Albans, Hanworth, and Orpington, as well as Vauxhall dealerships in Portsmouth and Wolverhampton.

A Renault and Dacia showroom in Doncaster will also close its doors.

However, the group’s Renault and Dacia site in Sheffield will remain open as a used car centre.

The move comes after Lithia, which completed its purchase of Pendragon, Evans Halshaw’s parent company, in February 2023, cut around 250 jobs last April by shutting down the CarStore used car supermarket brand.

This latest round of closures follows the earlier shutdown of an Evans Halshaw Ford site in Northwich and a Stratstone Mercedes dealership in Bradford.

A spokesperson for Evans Halshaw said: “The closure of these stores aligns with our wider strategic network plans, in conjunction with our OEMs and network partners.”

Meanwhile, the sale of Evans Halshaw’s Vauxhall dealership in Edinburgh to Arnold Clark has been confirmed, despite earlier rumours of a last-minute hitch.

Staff were reportedly sent home early last Friday amid speculation that Arnold Clark was reconsidering the deal.

However, both companies have not confirmed the sale went through, with Arnold Clark set to begin trading at the site later this week.

A spokesperson for Arnold Clark said: “Arnold Clark can confirm the takeover of the Evans Halshaw Vauxhall dealership in Edinburgh and will begin trading this week.” 

Evans Halshaw insiders added that the sale was officially completed on Tuesday, February 4.

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