Simpler ways of resolving prickly issues like warranty claims could be one of the benefits of a new survey of UK dealers designed to find out how they rate the tractor manufacturers whose products they sell.

Relationships between dealers and manufacturers can sometimes be a bit strained, particularly where price rises and breakdowns within the warranty period are concerned. The anonymous survey – being carried out by dealer organisation British Agricultural and Garden Machinery Association (BAGMA) – aims to find out what works and what doesn’t work in the dealer/manufacturer relationship. That should bring more harmony in the future, which will benefit farmers as much as dealers and machinery manufacturers.

The questions cover a wide range of subjects from image to training. Dealers will be asked, for example, to rate the manufacturer’s image, the reliability of its tractors and their suitability to the UK market.

They will also get a chance to score tractor manufacturers on sales support, availability of tractors, supply of parts, quality of documentation and reimbursement of warranty costs.

The UK is one of six European countries taking part in the project. This year’s survey closes on 28 August and a summary of the results will be issued in the autumn.

“We urge dealers to take the time to fill out and return the form as soon as they receive it,” says BAGMA director Keith Christian. “It is completely anonymous, so there can be no comeback on anyone making a return. We believe that it will prove extremely useful in improving the service dealers receive from their suppliers, which has to be good for the whole industry.”