Hyundai, Kia exempt franchise fees for service providers

Hyundai Motor and Kia Motors are going to subsidize franchise fees worth 2.2 billion won for its service providers faced with plummeting revenues since the outbreak of COVID-19.

Hyundai and Kia announced Monday that from March to May, they will not receive franchise fees from Bluehands and Auto Q, maintenance service brands for Hyundai and Kia, respectively The service providers are suffering massive sales loss as the demand for car repair and consumables falls dramatically following the spread of the pandemic.

For March, the South Korea’s biggest automakers decided to exempt the franchise fees 100% from 143 Bluehands shops and 73 Auto Q stations in Daegu and Northern Gyeongsang Province, while curtailing the fees for the rest of the country in half. For April and May, all Bluehands and Auto Q shops across the country are allowed to pay only 50% of the franchise fees. Currently, Hyundai charges 1.41 billion won for franchise fees, and Kia 820 million won.


zion37@donga.com