Independent garages are closing the vehicle off road (VOR) performance gap with franchised dealers, strengthening their appeal to fleet operators seeking to control maintenance costs without increasing downtime.
Data from Epyx shows vehicles spent an average of 1.73 days in franchised dealer workshops per visit during the 12 months to September 2026, compared with 1.97 days at independent garages.
However, the difference between the two sectors narrowed sharply towards the end of that period.
Fleet VOR gap falls to 0.09 days
In October 2025, the monthly gap stood at 0.36 days, with vehicles spending an average of 1.61 days at franchised dealers and 1.97 days at independent garages.
By September 2026, it had fallen to just 0.09 days. The franchised dealer average had increased to 1.77 days while the independent figure had improved to 1.86 days.
The findings come from Epyx’s 1link Service Network, which is used by UK fleets to process almost 20,000 car, van and truck service, maintenance and repair job sheets each day. The network covers fleets operating almost five million vehicles and connects them with more than 8,500 repair suppliers.
Charlie Brooks, chief operating officer at Epyx, said: “Franchised dealers have in the past tended to repair vehicles faster than independents, meaning shorter VOR times – but our latest data shows this gap has narrowed, with independents becoming faster, and official repairers slowing.
“However, these two trends are far from uniform. While many independents are working hard to reduce their VOR times, not all garages in the sector are making gains. Similarly, while some franchisees are seeing their figures fall, others are improving. It’s a complex overall situation.”
Price and downtime shape choices
Epyx said fleets have increased their use of independent garages in recent years, with the shift largely driven by competitive pricing and rising professionalism across the sector.
The narrowing VOR gap could make independents more attractive when fleet decision-makers allocate work. However, capability, location, price and the nature of the repair will continue to influence whether a franchised dealer or independent garage is selected.
Brooks said: “Fleet managers recognise that VOR brings a significant cost in terms of lost operational time, and often use our data and intelligence to help select the right repairers, balancing factors such as cost, capability and downtime. This has driven more business towards independents although again, the trend is far from uniform. Often, a franchise is the best solution.”
Across the network as a whole, average VOR time declined from 1.68 days in October 2025 to 1.58 days in September 2026, although Epyx said monthly performance continued to fluctuate.
Brooks added: “Our view is that VOR is falling over time, but this is an area of SMR where demand can sometimes rise or fall with little explanation. For example, May’s 1.52 days jumped to 1.85 days in June.”
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