Now, both manual car washes and hand car washes can open starting April 12. They weren't allowed to open earlier because they have a higher risk. Yes, you can now use all types of car washes starting Monday, April 12, including manual washes. Some car washes may remain open during lockdown. However, manual or hand washes remain closed in England under current legislation.
During lockdown, these have been placed in the same category as non-essential retailers and have been forced to close. Government guidance says car washes are on the list of businesses that must close, however, gas stations can remain open. However, showrooms and car dealerships cannot open under current lockdown restrictions. The CWA supports this decision, due to the high potential risk of transmission in these sites where PPE is often not available, social distancing is not practical, especially when valet parking is used inside cars and usually only cash is taken for payment.
There are other ways you should keep your car roadworthy by law, and most garages have been open and operating normally during the lockdown. This was reported by Forecourt Trader, who said that the Car Wash Association (CWA), after discussions with the Department of Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy (BEIS), had concluded that automatic car washes are safe. According to the CWA, there is confusion around the use of jet washes in England, as some authorities treat them as manual car washes and others allow them to function as “automatic car washes”. Since the shutdown, there have been some reports that police shut down hand car wash services, and My London pointed to a case at Park Royal, in which ten officials continued to operate while the boss remained at home.
Automatic car washes (ACW) will be allowed to operate in accordance with the new Level 4 restrictions that went into effect Sunday, Dec. 20. This is the first time that hand car washes have been allowed to open since January, when the third closure began, and the same goes for hairdressers, pubs and other businesses considered non-essential. But generally speaking, if your nearest gas station has a car wash, then there's no reason that car wash shouldn't work during lockdown.
The Gasoline Retailers Association (PRA) and the Car Wash Association (CWA) have sought clarity on the topic Non-essential businesses, such as stores and outdoor dining hospitality, were able to reopen on April 12, and that also includes car washes. The automatic washes remained open during the third shutdown, as they were allowed to operate despite restrictions. According to the Car Wash Association (CWA), under current guidance, fully automated car washes are already allowed to operate as long as they comply with Covid-19. The CWA says jet washes can work during lockdown as long as they follow the same rules on contact with third parties that apply to fully automatic washes.
