EARNINGS at family-owned taxi and minibus builder Allied Vehicles have risen almost nine-fold thanks, in part, to a pick-up in sales of wheelchair-adapted vehicles.

Turnover at the Glasgow-based business, which works with manufacturers such as Vauxhall and Mercedes Benz to produce niche automotive products, rose 10.4% to £61.5 million in the year to April 30.

Meanwhile, pre-tax earnings soared from £82,000 in 2010 to £727,286, back up to levels last seen before the financial crisis struck.

But Allied Vehicles managing director Paul Nelson remains in cautious mood.

He said: “We are fighting every step of the way. We have had a good period but we do not know what it will be like in the future.”

He added that performance in the current financial year has matched or exceeded that of last year.

“Performance is probably slightly better on the taxi side and slightly better on the motability side.

“We should be about the same or see a 5% or 10% increase in terms of the bottom line.”

However, he said taxi drivers are still having a tough time as key contracts from large banks and the Government have been cut back.

He noted that Allied, which employs 327 people, has been seeking to compete by bringing new products to the market.

Allied claims the title of the UK’s leading electric vehicle supplier. However, sales have so far amounted to little more than three figures.

Mr Nelson said that key customers remain large corporations and the government, although its products are garnering more interest from overseas.

He said: “Electric vehicles are not going to be the car of today or even tomorrow but they will be in the medium-term future.”

At parent company Allied Holdings, which also has some property interests, turnover rose 10.4% to £61.7m, taking pre-tax earnings to £805,000 from £165,000 the previous year. It is owned by brothers Gerry and Michael Facenna.