OUR TEAM AT 4 RINGS
OUR TEAM AT 4 RINGS
Our story
4 Rings started trading in October 2006, its private Limited Company status dates from June 2008 when it became 4 Rings Ltd.
Dean Hill left his Workshop Controller position with Maidstone Audi in order to provide a more personalised and practical service to the Audi driver in the form of 4 Rings, a new Audi Independent Specialist mobile service provider. The word very quickly spread thru the Audi TT community in particular. It would be accurate to state that the initial success of 4 Rings could be attributed to the Audi TT owner community.
Over the following seven years, 4 Rings Ltd grew to be the largest Audi Independent Specialist as a mobile service provider in the country. Employing four Audi technicians and three apprentice’s our mobile fleet and small workshop were taking care of our customers needs across the whole of South East and other parts around Greater London, Hertfordshire and Surrey to name but a few.
Unfortunately the mobile service operation became financially unsustainable and the business had to adapt. In 2013 4 Rings Ltd moved from its small office and workshop in Wilmington to its current location in Sandpit Road, Dartford. A conveniently located building in which three vehicle lifts were installed and an inspection pit already existed. The building boasts a reasonably sized office and customer waiting area as well as a 16 bay car park with additional parking if required.
Since 2013, 4 Rings Ltd offered a garage based service only. Despite the change in our business model, existing customers continued to use our services as well as our welcoming of new customers.
Today, still operating from Sandpit Road, Dartford, 4 Rings Ltd continues to serve some of its original customers from 2006/2007. In other cases, we continue to serve some of the original vehicles from 2006/2007 despite ownership change. Our customer retention and loyalty is the lifeblood of the business. A difficult decision was made in late 2023 to limit the intake of new customers. Our strong portfolio of existing customers uses all our manpower and capacity of our building. In order to provide our existing customer base with the high level of service we want to provide with shorter wait times we do limit new business unfortunately.
Our Team
Dean Hill
Dean started in the industry as an apprentice in 1993, working for a Fiat and Alfa Romeo dealership in Welling, Kent. He completed his apprenticeship by 1996 having done very well in both Junior and Senior national technician competitions. He remained with the Italian brand until 1998 when he accepted a new challenge in a brand new Audi Dealership in Aylesford. After 8 years, in 2006, having spent time in the workshop, warranty department, service department and workshop control across three Audi dealerships, he believed he could offer a more personal and tailored service to the Audi driver by starting a new Audi Independent Specialist business - 4 Rings.
Today Dean spends almost all the working day hours in the workshop spending less time in the office than he once used to, although he continues to drive the business forward.
Katie Lucas
Katie has been with us since early January 2015. Although having some experience in sales and customer service, this was her first (and last hopefully!) job in the automotive industry. The service advisor role within an automotive organisation has often been labelled as the most stressful position! Katie stepped into the role and got stuck in, eleven years later Katie is the central cog in the machine, she is the link between the customer, the warranty company, parts suppliers, office administration, communication administration and the workshop. Katie is an integral part of our success.
Ben Maw
Ben joined us in the middle of 2015. He has worked with the VAG brand since 1999 and completed his VW technician apprenticeship in 2002. Ben’s extensive experience and knowledge has its foundations in both VW and Audi dealerships. Ben’s contribution to the success of 4 Rings Ltd is irreplaceable, he is an essential part of the workshop and an essential part of our team.
Tom Barrett
Tom started as an apprentice in late 2024. He has exceeded expectations with his progress in understanding basic principles of automotive engineering as well as the practical application of his learning. Good apprentice’s are very hard to come by in this industry, and with Tom we have definitely ‘hit the jackpot’ with him as part of our team. Working alongside Dean and Ben he has shown he has what it takes to gain the knowledge and experience to become an Audi/VW specialising technician in his own right.