3:29 pm, March 19, 2021
Used car price growth is staying strong, according to latest data from Auto Trader which says there have now been 44 weeks of continuous growth.
Its findings from the circa 445,000 used vehicles currently on its marketplace showed that last week (March 8–14) the average price of a used car went up by 5.8 per cent year on year on a like-for-like basis.
And Auto Trader said that while the rate of growth had continued easing since the peak of 8.5 per cent in mid-December, the data indicates that it’s now stabilising, matching the 5.8 per cent year on year of the previous week.
Auto Trader added it saw 15.8m cross-platform visits to its site last week – 26 per cent up on 2019. Advert views also rose by 26 per cent, with the average time spent on the site going up by 22 per cent.
Richard Walker, Auto Trader’s director of data and insight, said: ‘Since mid-January we’ve seen consumer demand accelerate, and with just a few weeks until forecourts can fully reopen, levels have far exceeded our expectations.
‘Along with the strong sales performance already being recorded by most retailers, it gives us real confidence in a rapid recovery post-lockdown.
‘Strong price growth has helped to support robust profit margins for retailers and it’s reassuring to see that the easing of growth rates we’ve been tracking since December has begun to stabilise.
‘With increasing levels of demand in the market, we don’t see any reason for big price corrections or adjustments in the coming weeks.’
Consistent
An average of 2,580 retailers made daily price adjustments last week – just 45 more than in 2019.
A total of 17,475 vehicles were repriced, but Auto Trader said that while that was about 3,000 more than two years ago, it was consistent with the significantly higher volumes of stock currently on the site.
The average reduction was £247, which was £61 less than the 2019 average.
Petrol and diesel vehicle prices enjoyed robust rates of growth, mirroring the wider market, said Auto Trader.
The average price of a used diesel car increased 8.1 per cent year on year last week – the week before, it was eight per cent.
Used petrol prices went up by 5.2 per cent year on year, which was slightly lower than the previous week’s 5.3 per cent growth.
On Monday (Mar 15), Auto Trader chief operating officer Catherine Faiers spoke to Car Dealer Live about post-lockdown used car demand.
In the video, which you can see above, she also talked about what will happen to prices in the run-up to the 2030 ban and how consumers are getting ready to splash out with their lockdown savings.
