As the acknowledged provider of vehicles and vehicle finance to both former and serving members of the British Armed Forces, Forces Cars Direct (FCD) has worked tirelessly to deliver the remit of the company founder. Steve Thornton, a former soldier and Managing Director of the firm, has battled to service the cost-effective transport requirements of his extended ‘family’ for the past 17 years, in the process saving them around £60million in retail value.
Yet, away from the harsh realities of the motor industry, there exists a heartfelt desire to provide them that serve and those that did serve something more than just a great deal on their next car. Take the case of Chippenham-based Michael Brotherton, a retired Lieutenant Commander in the Royal Naval Air Squadron, who also became the MP for Louth, Lincolnshire, after serving his country.
Michael had read about the facilities offered by FCD in a Military magazine and contacted the company to discuss the potential of acquiring a new Skoda Fabia. Naturally, verification of service is an important qualifying factor and he feared that his original papers had been lost in various property moves over the years. Fortunately, with some pertinent research, Mike Defraine, of FCD, had found a ‘Mention in Despatches’ certificate that would prove to be more than acceptable.
FCD carried out some additional archive research and unearthed the relevant page from The London Gazette, 2nd July 1957, which posted HM The Queen’s award for Michael’s distinguished service in Cypriot operations of the previous year. Making an appropriate copy of the page, which neither Michael, nor members of his family, had ever seen before, it was received gratefully. Michael (88) is enjoying his retirement in Wiltshire, driving a Skoda Fabia supplied through FCD.
Going the extra mile is what Forces Cars Direct does, because it knows that the nation’s soldiers, sailors and airmen also travel the same route.
