A leading car sales group has confirmed two of its Kent dealerships will close at the end of the month, leaving staff bewildered.

Marshall Motor Group has earmarked its Canterbury and Ashford Peugeot sites for closure.

Stellantis UK, Peugeot’s owner, announced retailer contracts with Marshall were ending by mutual agreement and said it is working closely with affected stores to minimise disruption.

However, staff – who were told about the closures on Friday – say they are stunned by the news and claim it is not linked to performance issues.

One worker, who requested not to be named, told KentOnline: “We were told it was due to downsizing by Marshall and how the industry as a whole is struggling.

“It’s left a lot of people shocked, and understandably quite scared.

“We felt we were performing well and we didn’t really have much of an idea that this was going to happen.”

A consultation is now underway in the hope of finding as many workers as possible an alternative role.

However, it is understood no offers have yet been made, meaning hundreds of staff are facing redundancy.

The Canterbury dealership is in Broad Oak Road, while the Ashford site is off Crowbridge Road, South Willesborough, on the edge of the Orbital Park.

A Stellantis UK spokesman said: “Stellantis UK confirms that, by mutual agreement, the retailer contracts with Marshall Vauxhall Peterborough, Peugeot Peterborough, Peugeot Ashford and Peugeot Canterbury have ended, and they will cease representing our brands at the end of March.

“We are working closely with each site to ensure that there is minimum disruption to customers’ new vehicle orders and after-sales support.”