IT Support for the Motor TradeIT support for car dealers and garages that move real money every day.

A dealership or garage handles customer ID, finance applications, card payments and five-figure bank transfers, often from a shared front-desk PC and a workshop laptop that nobody quite owns. We run the IT for the motor trade: dealer and garage management systems kept running, payments and customer data protected, and the showroom, workshop and forecourt on a network that is built for each job.

Book a discovery call 01273 942560

Priced per user per month, security included Payment and guest networks kept apart Defences against vehicle payment fraud

Who this is for

Franchised and independent dealers, used car sales, independent garages and body shops, on dealer and garage management systems such as Keyloop, Pinewood, MAM, Autowork or Dragon2000, with sales, service and workshop staff sharing devices, and nobody whose job is IT.

Vehicle payment fraud, and how it is actually stopped

The motor trade moves large sums by bank transfer: paying for stock, paying out part-exchange settlements, receiving deposits and balances from customers. That makes dealers a target for the same fraud that hits conveyancing. A criminal gets into a mailbox, at the dealer, an auction house or a customer, watches a deal progress, and sends altered bank details at the moment money is due.

The controls are multi-factor authentication for every account, Conditional Access that blocks sign-ins from devices the business does not manage, impersonation protection tuned for your directors and regular suppliers, alerts on mailbox forwarding rules, and a rule that bank details are never accepted or changed on the strength of an email alone. Microsoft 365 Business Premium includes the technical half, and Google Workspace has its own equivalents; we switch them on and check them, and help you write the process for the rest.

Source: Small Business Guide (NCSC)

Card payments, finance and customer documents

Taking cards brings PCI DSS, the card industry's security standard, which your acquirer will ask you to confirm each year. For most dealers and garages using terminals from their payment provider, the practical basics are keeping the terminals on their own network away from guest Wi-Fi and office PCs, never writing card numbers into emails, notes or the DMS, and keeping the devices around them patched. We set the network up that way and give you what you need to answer the questionnaire.

Dealers arranging car finance are usually FCA-authorised or an appointed representative of a firm that is, and the FCA expects authorised firms to have systems and controls that fit their business, including keeping customer data and services secure. Its operational resilience rules are aimed at banks, insurers and larger firms rather than most dealers, but its pages on operational and cyber resilience are a sensible benchmark. Driving licences, proof of address and finance applications are personal data under UK GDPR, so they belong in the DMS or a controlled folder with retention set, not in a sales executive's inbox or on the front-desk desktop.

Source: PCI Security Standards Council, Operational resilience (FCA), Guidance for organisations (ICO)

The DMS, listings and the systems around them

We support dealer and garage management systems such as Keyloop, Pinewood, MAM, Autowork and Dragon2000, cloud hosted and on premises. Where a server still runs the DMS or parts system, we keep it patched, backed up with tested restores, and reachable only through the vendor's supported route. We are not the vendor's helpdesk, but we know how these systems are installed, signed into and integrated, and we work with the vendor when something breaks.

Stock flows from the DMS to vehicle listing platforms and your website, and those accounts are worth stealing. We put the logins behind multi-factor authentication where the platform allows it, keep them out of shared spreadsheets, and close them the day someone leaves.

Showroom, workshop and forecourt

A dealership is several different environments on one site. The showroom has sales desks and customer Wi-Fi, the front desk has a shared PC that everyone signs into, the workshop has diagnostic laptops running manufacturer software that often needs specific versions and its own internet access, and the forecourt and yard need CCTV that works at night. We separate them on the network so a customer's phone on guest Wi-Fi cannot see a card terminal or the DMS, keep diagnostic laptops away from email and general browsing, and give shared devices their own sign-in so you know who did what.

On Google Workspace? Same protection, Google's controls

Plenty of dealers and garages run on Gmail and Google Drive, and we support Google Workspace as fully as Microsoft 365. We give honest advice on which fits and do not ask you to move. For a Google Workspace business we enforce 2-Step Verification on every account, with security keys or passkeys for admins, set Gmail's phishing, spoofing and malware protection along with SPF, DKIM and DMARC, and alert on suspicious sign-ins and on mail forwarded outside the business, which is how most payment fraud starts.

Customer documents in Drive and shared drives get external sharing controls, third-party app access is restricted, and sales and front-desk devices are managed through Google endpoint management or Intune on a standalone licence. Gmail, Drive, Calendar and Contacts are backed up outside Google and kept for seven years in the UK, as a separate per user service. The DMS support, site networks and Cyber Essentials work the same on either platform.

What is included

Helpdesk and monitoring

Unlimited remote support from the helpdesk, Monday to Thursday 08:45 to 17:00 and Friday 08:45 to 16:00, with every device monitored and patched around the clock and alerts raised to the helpdesk.

Microsoft 365 or Google Workspace configured against payment fraud

On Microsoft 365, Business Premium with MFA for everyone, Conditional Access, Defender for Office 365 tuned for impersonation and payment fraud, and mailbox rules monitored. On Google Workspace, 2-Step Verification enforced, Gmail phishing and spoofing protection set and alerts on suspicious sign-ins and forwarding.

Device management

Sales, office and front-desk devices enrolled in Intune or Google endpoint management, encrypted and wipeable, with shared devices set up so each person signs in as themselves.

Dealer and garage systems

Systems such as Keyloop, Pinewood, MAM, Autowork and Dragon2000 kept patched and integrated; any remaining server maintained, backed up and eventually retired.

Networks built for each job

Payment terminals, office PCs, diagnostic laptops, CCTV and guest Wi-Fi kept on separate networks across showroom, workshop and forecourt.

Backup, tested

Microsoft 365 or Google Workspace and any server data backed up outside the vendor, kept in the UK, restores tested every quarter with the result shown to you. Microsoft 365 and Google Workspace backup is a separate service, priced per user per month on top of support.

Evidence

Cyber Essentials certification, help answering your acquirer's PCI DSS questionnaire, and documentation for a finance provider or insurer asking about your controls.

What is not included, and why

The DMS, listing platform and manufacturer diagnostic licences themselves. You buy those from the vendor; we make sure they work and are protected.
Regulatory advice on your FCA permissions or consumer credit obligations. We put in the technical controls and the evidence; your compliance lead owns the compliance.
Card terminals and merchant services come from your payment provider, and networking, CCTV and connectivity installations are quoted separately on the networking and broadband pages.

What it costs

Managed IT support for the motor trade is priced per user per month, with security monitoring and device management included, so it moves with your headcount. Microsoft 365 or Google Workspace backup is a separate service, also priced per user per month. Licences are extra at Microsoft's or Google's price: Microsoft 365 Business Premium is £16.90 per user per month at Microsoft's UK price. Onboarding, network and CCTV work, any server or migration work and Cyber Essentials certification are quoted as fixed projects. We quote after a short discovery call, once we know your setup.

How it starts

1Free IT Health CheckA short online check that benchmarks your security and business risk and tells you where you stand.
2Discovery callAn engineer, not a salesperson. What you have, what is broken, what it would cost to fix, in writing.
3OnboardingEverything moves across on a plan, with no gap in cover and nothing lost.

Run the free IT Health Check Book a discovery call

Questions people ask before signing

Do you support our DMS?

We support systems such as Keyloop, Pinewood, MAM, Autowork and Dragon2000. We are not the vendor's helpdesk, but we look after the devices, network, sign-in, backups and any server the system runs on, and we work with the vendor on faults in the software itself.

How do we stop part-exchange and stock payments going to the wrong account?

By making mailboxes hard to break into and by not trusting email for bank details. MFA for every account, Conditional Access blocking unmanaged devices, impersonation protection, alerts on forwarding rules, and a process that any new or changed bank details are confirmed by phone on a number you already hold.

Are we PCI DSS compliant?

That depends on how you take cards, and your acquirer decides which questionnaire you complete. For most dealers and garages using provider terminals, the IT part is keeping terminals on their own network, not storing card numbers anywhere, and keeping surrounding devices patched. We set that up and help you answer the questions.

Our diagnostic laptops need old software. Is that a problem?

It can be. We patch what can be patched without breaking the manufacturer software, keep those laptops on their own part of the network, and keep them off email and general browsing so the old software is not exposed to the usual attacks.

Can you sort out the Wi-Fi and CCTV across the site?

Yes. We design the network so guest Wi-Fi, payment terminals, office PCs, workshop devices and CCTV are kept apart, with coverage across the showroom, workshop and forecourt. That work is quoted as a project after a site survey.

When is support available?

The helpdesk is open Monday to Thursday 08:45 to 17:00 and Friday 08:45 to 16:00. Devices are monitored and patched around the clock, and alerts go to the helpdesk. On-call engineering outside office hours, including Saturdays, is an optional extra rather than part of the standard price, so speak to the team if you need it. Support is remote first, with on-site visits where they are needed.

We use Google Workspace. Can you still help?

Yes. We support Google Workspace and Microsoft 365 and will not push you to switch. We enforce 2-Step Verification, set Gmail protection against spoofing and impersonation, alert on forwarding, control Drive sharing, manage showroom and front-desk devices and back up Gmail and Drive outside Google. The DMS, network and PCI DSS work is the same either way.

How much does IT support cost for a dealer or garage?

Managed support is priced per user per month with security included, so it moves with your headcount. What changes the figure is the number of users and devices, any servers, the security options you choose and any specialist software. Backup is a separate per user service, Microsoft 365 or Google Workspace licences are at Microsoft's or Google's price, and projects such as onboarding are quoted as fixed pieces of work. We quote after a short discovery call, once we know your setup.