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At European Tyre Enterprise Limited, we believe that our success lies in our people, that’s why we invest heavily in our staff and provide a broad range of learning programmes to ensure that each team member feels value and can perform their role to the very highest standard.

Employee support and training

ETEL’s Training Academies provide a broad range of learning programmes to ensure that our people develop the knowledge, skills and behaviours required to be successful in their career and to deliver the very highest levels of service to our customers. Kwik Fit has a longstanding reputation for providing industry leading training and development of the very highest quality. The Kwik Fit apprenticeship programme, which has helped over 2,000 young people start their career in the Autocare sector, is rated as Outstanding by Ofsted. Around 10% of our centre management are former Apprentices. Our regional training academies deliver over 170,000 hours of training each year and are accredited by the Institute of the Motor Industry (IMI) to deliver MOT Inspector, Hybrid & Electric Vehicle Technician and Air-conditioning qualifications, as well as Service and Diagnostic Technician accreditations. In addition to the technical training programmes, our management, leadership and customer experience programmes are second to none. Investment in state-of-the-art learning systems means that learning is available via smartphone, tablet or computer whenever our people need it. Our training programmes are accredited by the globally renowned Learning & Performance Institute, which ensures that there is a demonstrable link between learning and the improved performance of our people and organisation.

Employee welfare and financial benefits

The health and wellbeing of our employees is integral to the way we operate. Our Employee Assistance Programme is available 24/7 for employees and their families, providing confidential support to anyone experiencing difficulties in their home or work life. Trained advisors and counsellors are available to provide help and advice at any time of day or night.

We have used our scale to negotiate significant benefits on behalf of employees. Not only do staff and their family receive generous discounts on our own products and services, we have an employee reward programme called “My Pitstop” which provides discounts with over 800 retailers, as well as cashback offers on items such as holidays, insurance and mobile phone contracts.

We provide employees with advice and support in their financial planning through a partnership with the Wagestream platform. This allows users to track their pay, regularly save small amounts directly from their pay packet and, when they face unexpected expenses, draw on a portion of their wages before payday so they don’t have to get into debt. Employees have access to a range of financial education tools developed by The Money Advice Service, including webinars that teach staff how to look after their money and an online resource hub that identifies what information and entitlements are relevant to them.

Diversity

We have clear equal opportunity policies for recruitment, training and promotion and we have an ethnically and generationally diverse employee base. For various reasons, careers in our sector have traditionally appealed to men more than women, but we are committed to providing opportunities to female candidates across all areas of our business.

Customer service

We are committed to delivering the highest level of customer service in the automotive industry. We recognise that many customers visit us at a time of urgent need and we will always seek to give them reassurance and find solutions to the problems they face. Our workforce is highly skilled, a result of our industry-leading training programmes, and is focused on delivering both the technical capability and personal service our customers deserve.

We have dedicated Customer Service teams to assist our customers, ensuring that if they have visited a centre, shopped with us on-line or used our mobile fitting service, they will be talking to the right person. This ‘joined-up’ process enables us to respond more quickly and effectively to each customer’s requirements. As a team we instil a “Customer First” ethic in the workplace and will always look for opportunities to make our customer journey a more rewarding and pleasant experience.

We offer an instant feedback service to customers, providing them with the opportunity to request assistance if they have a complaint to make about any aspect of the service they are receiving in one of our centres. This service is available to customers in real time, ensuring that any problems can be resolved while they are still in the centre and without further inconvenience.

Community support

As the leading automotive servicing and repair provider in the UK, we are aware of our role in supporting the communities in which we operate. Our priority in our centres is to ensure that any vehicle leaves us safer than when it arrived, and we extend that focus on safety and preventative maintenance to our community support. We feel we can best make a difference in our communities in areas where we have expertise. We partner with many different organisations, both at a local and national level, providing advice and support to help increase motoring knowledge and improve road safety.

Car care events

We are well aware that many motorists don’t enjoy visiting a garage, and research has shown us that many drivers would like the knowledge to be able to deal with a motoring emergency and be able to carry out basic car maintenance checks themselves.

In response to these findings and to help drivers find garages a less stressful place to visit, we hold car care evenings, to help vehicle owners learn more about their car and as a result, feel more comfortable if they ever need to go to a garage. We often hold these evenings in partnership with local community groups – the events are completely free to attend and the centre team will host them in their free time, as part of their commitment to supporting their neighbourhood. The feedback from the events is very positive, with attendees reporting how much more confident they are around their car and less nervous if they ever have to visit a garage.

Road safety partnerships

As part of our ongoing commitment to helping improve safety on the UK’s roads, we support many road safety partnerships around the UK. These coalitions of the emergency services, local authorities and other organisations work together to highlight the common dangers on our roads and aim to improve road safety in their region. We attend community events to provide advice on preventative car maintenance, with a particular focus on the importance of drivers looking after their tyres.

Charity support

As an organisation which operates one of the UK’s leading brands with a national network as well as a significant online presence, we recognise the role we can play in supporting good causes. Over the last two years we have been raising awareness and funds in support of Prostate Cancer UK, and have so far raised over £500,000 to help fund their campaigns and research.