Nobody quite knows, if the Euro were to fail, exactly what course it may take and what the consequences will be. Most economists feel that it would be pretty chaotic and the consequences pretty dire for economies all over the world. As Europe is our main trading partner nearly all businesses in the UK will be affected to some degree by a Euro collapse, just at a time when many companies are at their weakest.

If the Euro does fail and the European countries revert to their own currency we were wondering what affect it will have on the choices our clients make. For example at the moment Audi contract hire is our bestselling line. However many feel that under these circumstances the value of the German currency would soar, making imports from Germany considerably more expensive.

Our second most popular line is BMW leasing followed by Volkswagen, both German manufacturers. Does this mean that people would opt for vehicles manufactured in countries where the currency is weaker instead of choosing BMW? Probably not but it would certainly give an advantage to some of those other European countries. It would inevitably make it more difficult for German manufacturers to sell their cars around the world, particularly to Southern European countries where the currency is likely to be very weak indeed.

The late Professor Sir Alan Walters who was economic adviser to Margaret Thatcher said right from the outset that the Euro would not succeed; he said he didn’t know when but he knew that it would fail; many treated his remarks with derision at the time. We will have to wait and see what happens but even if a strong Deutsche Mark does return we are not expecting many clients to forgo their Mercedes contract hire car for a Perodua .