Auto Trader Reports 17% Of Used Cars More Expensive Than Brand New
Auto Trader has reported that, due to supply shortages, 17% of nearly new used cars are now more expensive than their brand-new equivalents.
Last week, the used car sector experienced a 76th consecutive week of rising values and marks a jump on the previous all-time high of 11% recorded in August for vehicles aged up to 12-months-old.
37% of nearly new cars are now priced within 5% of their brand-new counterparts.
Data shows used car prices on their online platform risen four-fold in a year.
Auto Trader said the average price of a used car offered for sale rose 23.9% year-on-year last week, reaching £19,018. This is four times the 5.7% YoY growth.
It took an average of just 23 days for stock to leave car retailer forecourts during the week. Auto Trader said that last week’s speed of sale was 17% faster than that recorded during the week of April 12.
Richard Walker, Auto Trader’s Data and Insights Director, said: “With so much attention focussed on inflation right now, there’s huge interest amongst economists on those components that are recording substantial price rises, not least used cars which have been a notable driver of recent UK inflation rates.”
“With levels of used car price growth once again smashing previous records, there is a lot of speculation around how long this boom could last.”
“Whilst inflation in itself does pose a potential risk to consumer demand, we don’t expect to see price growth slow anytime soon.”
“This is based on the continued acceleration we’re tracking across the market – fuelled, in part, by increased levels of household savings, a positive sentiment shift towards car ownership, and the 1.5 million ‘lost’ transactions last year – coupled with the ongoing shortage in both new and used car supply.”
Auto Trader said that a dramatic increase in consumer demand had been evidenced by more than 14.8 million cross platform visits to Auto Trader last week, which marked a massive 32% increase on the same week two years ago.
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