Autotrader chief executive Nathan Coe has issued a fresh video update to retailers following weeks of criticism over the web platform’s Deal Builder tool, insisting the prevailing “reserve now” option still produces the platform’s “best lead”.
Within the message, Coe said Autotrader has spent the last couple of weeks “listening to customers” and acting on several areas of feedback: launching customer advisory groups, rolling out a brand new product page designed to offer more parity across contact options and increasing retailer support for Deal Builder users. Watch The Video.
Autotrader chief executive Nathan Coe has issued a fresh video update to retailers following weeks of criticism over the web platform’s Deal Builder tool, insisting the prevailing “reserve now” option still produces the platform’s “best lead”.
Within the message, Coe said Autotrader has spent the last couple of weeks “listening to customers” and acting on several areas of feedback: launching customer advisory groups, rolling out a brand new product page designed to offer more parity across contact options and increasing retailer support for Deal Builder users. Watch The Video.
Importantly, changes to how reservations work inside the tool can even be made with an alternate Reservation Request option developed for dealers – each large and small – who say full reservations don’t fit their sales process.
This is able to see the lead flagged to the retailer but acceptance remaining entirely inside the dealer’s control. Retailers would then contact the customer and follow their preferred sales process
Coe reiterated the corporate’s view that reservations remain the strongest type of enquiry, pointing to consumer research that means many buyers are open to reserving online and claiming some retailers have reported very high conversion rates from reservation leads.
Coe also sought to reassure dealers not currently using Deal Builder, saying they are going to not be moved onto it until they’ve had the choices explained and may select what works for them. Originally Autotrader planned to make Deal Builder mandatory from November 17.
Alongside the reservation changes, Coe said Autotrader plans to alter the best way it talks about “deals” and “leads” after finding some retailers interpret a “deal” as something way more committed – typically involving confirmed part-exchange figures, accomplished finance steps and a deposit able to be taken.
He said Autotrader will begin to separate “deals” and other online leads more clearly in communications, aiming to scale back confusion.
Coe also flagged an early-stage review of whether the £99 reservation fee stays appropriate across different vehicle price points. He said Autotrader has not seen evidence the fee is “getting in the best way” thus far, but acknowledged it has been raised by some retailers as a possible hurdle.
The LinkedIn response to Coe’s update was sharply mixed – with a big proportion of comments questioning Autotrader’s intent and warning that trust is eroding, while a smaller group welcomed the engagement and pushed for clearer evidence.
For a lot of dealers within the thread, the following phase will probably be judged on outcomes somewhat than announcements: how Reservation Request is implemented in practice, whether the “deal” language changes reduce confusion, and whether Autotrader is willing to interact meaningfully on the pricing and market-power concerns that repeatedly surfaced – even from commenters otherwise open to digital retailing.
Several commenters urged Autotrader to back its claims with transparent, verifiable results. One dealer-side comment asked whether Autotrader could publish testimonials or case studies from businesses which have used Deal Builder for 2 years, arguing that peer evidence could help other retailers feel more settled.
One other commenter, taking a more analytical stance, said it was positive to see the CEO fronting the problem, but called for correct A/B testing data comparing outcomes for Deal Builder and non-Deal Builder vehicles, ideally inside the same dealer inventory.
A variety of replies – including from those that said they didn’t object to Deal Builder in principle – pivoted quickly to the platform’s charging model.
One independent retailer argued the larger query is pricing, describing a system where larger groups profit from scale discounts while smaller dealers carry a better cost per sale.
Several commenters also criticised regular annual increases, saying dealers cannot simply pass those costs on to buyers in a margin-compressed market. A recurring grievance was that many dealers feel “stuck” because of Autotrader’s market dominance and subsequently struggle to fund alternative market channels.
While Coe positioned Reservation Request as a brand new “selection” for dealers, many comments argued the core concern stays: Autotrader’s role within the transaction and that as a marketing platform, it mustn’t insert itself into the sales process.
One dealer principal described it as “mind blowing” that Deal Builder has develop into the “hill” the corporate appears “willing to die on”, arguing that deposits and reservations ought to be handled by the retailer, not the marketplace.
Others said the update felt like rigorously managed PR somewhat than real engagement, with one retailer claiming the messaging sounded “political” and calling for Autotrader to confess it had mishandled the rollout.
Not all feedback was hostile. A small variety of commenters indicated they’ve not had major issues with Deal Builder or reservations themselves, suggesting the product can work with the appropriate pricing model.
Because the end of October, when some independent dealers began to voice concerns about Autotrader’s plans for mandatory Deal Builder services, and a few threatened to cancel their promoting packages, its share price has fallen from 780.4p on October 31 to 594.8p as of December 11.
In November the UK’s largest automotive marketplace posted a 5% rise in group revenue to £317.7 million for the six months to 30 September 2025, with group operating profit up 6% to £200.1m.
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