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Highly Rated Awards 2025 winners announced
Autotrader’s Highly Rated Retailers for 2025 have been announced – here’s how they help you find a car retailer you can trust.
Words by: Andrew Woodhouse
Published on 9 July 2025 | 0 min read
Finding a retailer you can trust is one of the biggest steps you’ll take when buying your car.
Whether you’re shopping with a nationwide retailer or a local dealership, you’re going to be handing a fair chunk of your money for a car – so you want to know you’re getting your money’s worth, that you’re in good hands and that you’re getting the right support and advice at every step the way. So, every year, we help you find the retailers that deliver the best customer service with the Highly Rated awards. Highly Rated retailers are those who have delivered the best customer service on our platform, and established a strong brand reputation based on trust and transparency with their customers. To win a Highly Rated award, retailers need to consistently hit our core criteria: their reviews rating – which needs to be four stars or above the number of real reviews they have – which will be based on the size of their forecourt how they reply to negative reviews – just in case you need a bit more support Having a minimum of 10 reviews This criteria is checked for a full 12 month period to ensure our winners have consistently delivered this standard for the full year. If they’ve won an award, it’s because they really care about their customers feedback. If you see the Highly Rated logo on an Autotrader advert or visit a dealership displaying the Highly Rated logo, you’re in good hands because these retailers have had plenty of positive reviews from their actual customers, and provide solid customer service. This year, over 2,000 retailers have been recognised as Highly Rated by their customers on Autotrader.
Whether you’re shopping with a nationwide retailer or a local dealership, you’re going to be handing a fair chunk of your money for a car – so you want to know you’re getting your money’s worth, that you’re in good hands and that you’re getting the right support and advice at every step the way. So, every year, we help you find the retailers that deliver the best customer service with the Highly Rated awards. Highly Rated retailers are those who have delivered the best customer service on our platform, and established a strong brand reputation based on trust and transparency with their customers. To win a Highly Rated award, retailers need to consistently hit our core criteria: their reviews rating – which needs to be four stars or above the number of real reviews they have – which will be based on the size of their forecourt how they reply to negative reviews – just in case you need a bit more support Having a minimum of 10 reviews This criteria is checked for a full 12 month period to ensure our winners have consistently delivered this standard for the full year. If they’ve won an award, it’s because they really care about their customers feedback. If you see the Highly Rated logo on an Autotrader advert or visit a dealership displaying the Highly Rated logo, you’re in good hands because these retailers have had plenty of positive reviews from their actual customers, and provide solid customer service. This year, over 2,000 retailers have been recognised as Highly Rated by their customers on Autotrader.
How are Highly Rated retailers chosen?
How are Highly Rated retailers chosen?
It all comes down to what the customer thinks. To be in the running for a Highly Rated award, any retailer needs number of real reviews that is proportional to the size of their forecourt. In addition to this, retailers will need to have minimum of 10 reviews to be in with a chance. Every retailer will need to hold an average review rating of four stars or above on Auto Trader's marketplace. It’s a high bar, but they put the work in to get there and deliver you a great level of customer service. We know things don’t always go to plan, so if a retailer does get a one or two star review, they’ll need a 95% response rate. That way you know that you’ll be working with the retailer to fix any issues you might face along the way. The data is rigorously checked and endorsed by Autotrader, meaning we are confident in the awards we give out and we want consumers have confidence and trust in that process. By prioritising customer satisfaction, these retailers stand out in a highly competitive market by ensuring their car buyers have a positive and painless experience. Find a retailer on Autotrader, and start your search for your next car on the right foot.
It all comes down to what the customer thinks. To be in the running for a Highly Rated award, any retailer needs number of real reviews that is proportional to the size of their forecourt. In addition to this, retailers will need to have minimum of 10 reviews to be in with a chance. Every retailer will need to hold an average review rating of four stars or above on Auto Trader's marketplace. It’s a high bar, but they put the work in to get there and deliver you a great level of customer service. We know things don’t always go to plan, so if a retailer does get a one or two star review, they’ll need a 95% response rate. That way you know that you’ll be working with the retailer to fix any issues you might face along the way. The data is rigorously checked and endorsed by Autotrader, meaning we are confident in the awards we give out and we want consumers have confidence and trust in that process. By prioritising customer satisfaction, these retailers stand out in a highly competitive market by ensuring their car buyers have a positive and painless experience. Find a retailer on Autotrader, and start your search for your next car on the right foot.
