The importance of doing business with an authorised auto dealership has been highlighted in the wake of Toyota Motor Corp.'s recent safety of more than eight million vehicles last month.

HWP Group, the Island's biggest auto dealer, has itself recently had to recall 483 Honda models due to a faulty window switch which has the potential to cause a fire when wet.

And Jonathan Brewin, president, and Harry Andrews, vice-president of customer service at HWP Group, are keen to get the word out about the advantages of buying a car or bike through a bona fide dealer, above all, a comprehensive after sales support service.

Mr. Brewin has also expressed his concerns over the impact on business of this year's Budget, which was announced by Finance Minister Paula Cox on Friday, particularly a possible rise in health insurance.

"It has added cost increases to all local and international companies, the impact of which, I think, is going to be significant," he said.

"I can't see it unfortunately being a way of increasing employment for unemployed Bermudians.

"We are probably looking at double digit increases in health insurance, which will fall on the back of this Budget, which is going to impact employees and employers alike.

"Employers are further challenged by having to further reduce their staff overhead costs because their top line sales will be compromised by people having less disposable income."

But he added that this had to be balanced with Government taking steps to ensure its fiscal future and uphold the financial credibility of the country as a whole in the eyes of everyone from ratings agencies to auto suppliers.

"The belief among auto dealers is that we are still banking on a 20 percent decline in 2010, but we are hopeful of some revitalisation in 2011," he said.

Mr. Brewin said that prospective buyers should always consider purchasing their new vehicles from an authorised representative of a supplier, whose job it is to represent the company name, display the brand properly and maintain the product, rather than buying through unofficial 'grey' market channels and directly from overseas.

He said there were a number of benefits to be derived from sourcing their vehicle through the authorised route, including being informed of safety recalls, carrying out the necessary repairs and receiving a guarantee.

HWP recently had to call in every Honda it sold in Bermuda since 2002/03 after being alerted by the manufacturer to the defective window switch issue and Mr. Brewin said that his company could have between five or six recalls or campaign on various vehicles running at any one time.

He said that HWP had a central database which records all of the vehicle information and a dedicated warranty administrator who keeps track of it all.

Among the other advantages of choosing an authorised dealer, he said, were being able to tap into the expertise of highly trained technicians, specialist tools, including diagnostic equipment, and exclusive access to supplier websites.

"Best practices are expected to be applied throughout the distributor networks and we are monitored and checked against those usually every three months," said Mr. Brewin.

"We have to upload evidence of the work we are carrying out on the vehicles and Honda, for example, actually calls our customers direct to get information and feedback on its products."

HWP has several new products in the pipeline for 2010, ranging from a Volkswagen Golf diesel - one of the first of its kind of eco-friendly and fuel efficient passenger cars - and the Hyundai i20 Coupe to a new hybrid car, as well as new motorbikes.