Cox Automotive has reported a “fruitful summer” for used LCV sales on the back of a major ramp-up in volumes.
It’s seen a 32% year-on-year increase in the number of LCVs sold through its Manheim Auction Services brand during June, July and August. This brings the market back to pre-pandemic market levels, despite new LCV registrations still trailing c.14% behind those seen in 2018/19. Cox represented over 300 vendors during this period and a total of 75.5% of vehicles sold first time.
Matthew Davock, director of Manheim Commercial Vehicles, Cox Automotive, said: “It’s been an outstanding summer for LCV sales, with activity in our lanes more than matching the recent heat wave. The appetite we’ve seen during this 12-week period points to a market that has established a new sense of normality.”
Prices are down from the “super-heated immediate post-pandemic high” and have settled to a ‘new normal’ for the LCV market. Cox Automotive’s analysis shows that the average selling price is now £9,364, down 1.7% year-on-year and 10.8% lower than the highs of 2021, but 42% ahead of the pre-pandemic average. The average age of LCVs is now 67 months while average mileage is 78,555.
Davock added: “The laws of supply and demand continue to assert themselves on the used LCV market. Despite the average van now commanding £2,795 more than its 2019 equivalent, it is 10 months older and carrying 9,222 more miles. The positive month-on-month increase in new LCV registrations recorded by the SMMT this year has helped see additional volumes reach the used market, but sustained trade demand means prices remain strong, despite a 12-15% price guide reduction for some models during same period.”
Cox also noted a particular shortage of sub-60,000-mile stock; the proportion of auction entries met this criterion has fallen from almost half (46%) in 2019 to just 24% now, showing that vans are being worked harder.
Cap HPI data published last week also shows that average used LCV values fell in August, down 1.2% at three years / 60,000 miles. It also highlighted that vehicles entering the used market are generally older, have covered higher mileages and are showing more damage in line with this.
Last week, Cox Automotive announced it was extending its hybrid sales programme with the launch of a new physical sales from its Manheim site in Shotts, Scotland. It follows the return to physical sales at Manheim’s Haydock centre in May 2023 and means trade buyers are now, on average, just 58 miles from a Manheim physical commercial vehicle sale.
