Privately-owned North-eastern Citroen, Honda, Peugeot and Suzuki retailer Springfield Group is ploughing further investment into its customer contact centre to almost double the number of staff there just months after it started.

Since the call centre, based at the group’s headquarters in Washing-ton, began proactive sales contact in April for its eight dealerships, Springfield Honda alone has taken bookings for more than 170 test drives and 230 services.

Now, due to increasing business, the call centre is moving to a larger office and increasing the number of operatives from six to 11. The expansion is part of a £5m total investment which has seen its Sunderland dealership refurbished, a move to a revamped facility in Gateshead and the opening in Durham of a new showroom and service centre.

Springfield Honda director David Lewins says: “Staff at each dealership can now spend more time talking to customers and providing them with the relevant information while the contact centre deals with bookings, making the system more efficient.”

The group also operates a bodyshop on the Washington site.