Anderson Cars, one of Scotland's leading motor groups with a turnover of £102m, has been forced to call in the receivers.

They are keeping the dealer group trading, despite making 200 of the 350 employees redundant. Anderson was strong in north-east Scotland with seven outlets - four in Aberdeen, plus one each at Inverurie, Inverness and Perth.

Hugh Little, a spokesman for Anderson investors Abtrust, said: “Our most recent figures 18 months ago showed a £1m-plus profit. “You have to be a big group with muscle power to influence manufacturers or a single dealership with small overheads. “Groups with seven or eight sites are under threat. Only days before the bank called in the receiver, we had decided on a downsizing strategy and were planning to offload a number of outlets and franchises.

“If this can happen to a successful company like Anderson Cars, you wonder how many other dealership groups are almost on their knees through no fault of their own.” Anderson holds franchises for Mercedes-Benz, Renault, Mitsubishi, Honda, Isuzu, Subaru and Nissan.