Washtec is also calling for the industry to get behind the Car Wash Campaign Group (CWCG), which has been set up to tackle problems in the sector. The group, whose chairman is Parkfoot Garage owner David Charman, has been urging retailers not to give up on their car wash businesses but to join the group and be part of the resurgence of the sector. It also hopes to change the public's opinion of car washes and promote best practice. The group will be announcing more information for retailers soon.

Other manufacturers agree that the industry needs to join together to fight the threat of illegal hand car washes. Dave Lindon, business development director at car wash manufacturer Istobal, advises retailers to do their homework and make sure they are up to date on the latest legislation. Earlier this year the Environment Agency released a set of pollution prevention guidelines called Vehicle Washing and Cleaning: PPG13. It covers car wash machines and hand washes and outlines how car wash set-ups should dispose of used water and chemicals.

Lindon says: "These guidelines are good for retailers because the agency can check on hand car washes and has the power to close them down if they aren't being run properly. The hand car wash issue has slowed the market down slightly, but at Istobal we are increasing our market share, so it's maybe not affecting us so much."

Pay adds: "We can see a far stricter and more legislative Water Framework Directive being used in Scotland to prevent trade effluent - it is likely that we will see the same regulations in England as well before too long. The key findings are that all surface water should be discharged back into the environment as close to where it fell as possible: this means significant issues for building regulations and design going forward."
The issue of trade effluent is something the Car Wash Association (CWA) has been working on. The group wants to see the government implement General Binding Rules (GBR) which would make it an offence to discharge trade effluent into surface drainage. The group has been working with the Association of Convenience Stores (ACS), which was in contact with MP Phil Woolas while he was Minister for the Environment. Woolas stated in a letter that he recognised the damage that washing cars could do to the water quality and promised a consultation on GBRs by the end of this year. The ACS says GBRs will also make it easier for the Environment Agency to take action against illegal operations - it currently has to prove an act has led to a specific incidence of pollution. However, Woolas was made Immigration Minister in Gordon Brown's October reshuffle, prompting the ACS to write to his replacement, MP Jane Kennedy.