Back to the future! BCA returns to Farnham

Farnham is receiving a big business boost as Europe’s leading vehicle auctioneer, British Car Auctions (BCA), is moving its administrative centre back to the town after a near twenty-five year absence. After leaving its offices in Farnham’s West Street in 1983, BCA has returned to new premises in Headway House, less than half a mile away, in 2008.

BCA has taken a long-term lease on Headway House in Crosby Way just off West Street and has undertaken a multi-million pound high-tech refit. The newly refurbished two-storey location covers 20,500 sq ft and around 150 staff will transfer from the current location in Hindhead.

The state of the art offices at Headway House form BCA’s administrative and technical hub, with accounts, IT, personnel and marketing based on-site. Also based at Farnham are BCA's Legal department, the Company Secretary, Payroll Services, Credit Control, Procurement and Insurance.

From Headway House, BCA will run the back office activities associated with selling, invoicing and processing over £3 billions worth of vehicles every year and running a highly developed programme of auctions around the UK featuring the widest range of vehicles.

BCA Communications Director Tony Gannon commented “We are delighted to be moving to this new high-tech hub in Farnham. The newly fitted-out Headway House is a superb working environment and Farnham itself is a great town to work in.”

BCA was prompted to move as the previous head office – former Edwardian Hotel, Expedier House in Hindhead - was increasingly unsuitable for a modern, highly developed and swiftly moving market leading business such as BCA . Various solutions were examined within the local area and Farnham’s Headway House offered the most benefits.

BCA was last based in Farnham in 1983, when the company owned the former Expedier House in West Street. And the company has an even longer association with the town, stretching back to the 1950s when it was known as Southern Counties Car Auctions and operated from nearby Frimley Bridges.

Today, BCA operates 21 vehicle auction centres in the UK including Europe’s largest at nearby Blackbushe, where the company can sell in excess of 1,000 cars a day. BCA also operates a further 24 centres across ten mainland European countries, including Germany, France, Spain and Portugal.

The company handles over 1.3 million vehicles every year, selling though auction and over the internet and has a turnover in excess of £3 billion annually.