Auto Distributors in Iran in a Rush to Reassure Customers

EghtesadOnline: With the government banning auto imports in late June, distributors of such vehicles have announced that they will continue to offer after-sales services to customers for the next ten years.

News ID: ۷۴۵۵۶۱

03 July 2018

Head of the Iran Auto Importers Association Farhad Ehteshamzad says according to car consumer protection laws, the distributors are to provide after-sales services to customers at least for ten years after the time of purchase, reported ISNA.

Ehteshamzad was trying to alleviate concerns regarding the absolute ban on car imports. Following US President Donald Trump’s pullout from the 2015 Iran nuclear deal, Tehran is taking measures to withstand looming sanctions, one of which has been prohibiting vehicle imports to conserve foreign currency reserves.

Cutting Jobs

Pointing to rumors of layoffs, Ehteshamzad provided detailed statistics to fully depict the consequences of a total ban on car imports, Financial Tribune reported.

He says there are more than 15,000 people employed by car import companies, 7,000 of whom work in the sales departments, logistics and foreign trade.

“If the ban holds, these people could lose their jobs. If each of these 7,000 employees maintains a family of three, the government’s decision will jeopardize the livelihood of 21,000 people.”

The government has imposed a ban on the import of 1,339 commodities categorized as “non-essential goods with domestic equivalents,” which has been in force as of June 22.

Industries Minister Mohammad Shariatmadari asserts the ban on car imports alone will save the country 2.2 billion dollars.

However, according to an assessment by the Persian economic daily Donya-e-Eqtesad, commodities included in the newly unveiled list accounted for less than 8% or $4.04 billion of Iran’s overall imports in the last fiscal (March 2017-18).

Figures show that the foreign currency saved on the back of such measure would be insignificant.