Motor Ombudsman’s Star Awards shine the spotlight on excellence
The Motor Ombudsman has launched its Star Awards competition for 2023, recognising individuals and businesses within the automotive sector that have gone above and beyond the call of duty in the eyes of their customers
Consumers can submit a short online account via The Motor Ombudsman’s dedicated Awards portal (TheMotorOmbudsman.org/Awards) up until mid-October
This year, The Motor Ombudsman has also partnered with the Chartered Trading Standards Institute (CTSI), with the overall National Garage Star Award being presented in person alongside CTSI’s annual Hero Awards at the Houses of Parliament in November
The Motor Ombudsman is pleased to announce that the 2023 Star Awards, encompassing both the Garage Star and Customer Service Star accolades, are now open for customer nominations on its dedicated online Awards portal (TheMotorOmbudsman.org/Awards).
The annual competition was introduced by the Ombudsman for the automotive sector in 2020 to recognise individual team members and businesses accredited to one or more of its four Motor Industry Codes of Practice, that have gone the extra mile in the eyes of consumers. This could be for example, during the repair or purchase of a new or used vehicle, or when submitting a warranty claim or enquiry. Since the Star Awards were launched, around 3,500 nominations have been submitted to date – short accounts which showcase examples of excellence and remarkable acts of kindness and generosity to help motorists in their time of need, and to stay on the move.
More than 7,000 Motor Ombudsman-accredited franchise dealerships, independent garages and body repair centres across the UK are eligible to be put forward by motorists for one of the eight Garage Star trophies representing different regions of the UK, spanning Jersey in the south, to the Shetland Islands in the north. Similarly, for the three Customer Service Star Awards on offer, motorists can submit a nomination highlighting examples of exceptional customer service provided by the UK head offices of vehicle manufacturers, warranty providers and garage/dealership groups that have committed to The Motor Ombudsman’s long-established Codes of Practice.
Entries can be submitted by consumers to the contest up until the 15th October 2023, during which time, businesses can promote the competition, and be recognised in return by their customers. From the nominations received over the coming months, a shortlist of three names will then be compiled by The Motor Ombudsman for each of the 11 awards available in the contest. This will be based on a pre-defined set of criteria which looks at how a team member or organisation went above and beyond to assist a customer, as opposed to the quantity of submissions received for a specific person or business.
The finalists will then be passed to a panel of judges to collectively decide the respective trophy winners for this year’s Garage Star and Customer Service Star Awards, as well as the two highly commended entries for each of the categories. Judges will equally be tasked with naming the recipient of the coveted National Garage Star Award, which will be jointly chosen by the panel from this year’s eight regional Garage Star Award winners.
Furthermore, in another first for the Star Awards, The Motor Ombudsman has partnered with the Chartered Trading Standards Institute (CTSI)’s Hero Awards. With the 2023 awards themed around ‘partnerships’, the National Garage Star Award will be presented in-person to this year’s winner at the prestigious ceremony taking place at the Houses of Parliament in London’s Westminster. In recognition of claiming the top award in the competition, the business or team member will receive an enhanced prize of £2,000 worth of vouchers, as well as marketing exposure, including a bespoke video filmed at their premises to highlight their achievement.
Bill Fennell, Chief Ombudsman and Managing Director of The Motor Ombudsman, said: “We are delighted to re-launch our search for this year’s Garage and Customer Service Stars, and to shine the spotlight on those who have gone beyond the call of duty. The Star Awards are the perfect platform to bring these good news stories to the fore, and for the businesses and individuals involved to be publicly recognised for their high standards of service provided to motorists.”
Bill added: “As we continue to evolve the prominence of our Star Awards, we are also very pleased to be partnering with the Chartered Trading Standards Institute to formally honour the winner of the 2023 National Garage Star Award in a very special setting. Based on the high calibre of last year’s entries, we expect this year’s accolades to be another closely fought contest, and we look forward to reading more great nominations from across the motor industry.”
For more information about The Motor Ombudsman’s Star Awards, visit www.TheMotorOmbudsman.org/Awards