BCA has warned of price pressure on late-plate vehicles because of the number of pre-registered cars in the market and the competitive deals on offer on new cars.
“There is pressure on the values of late plate vehicles due to the attractive deals available on new and PCPs and the availability of pre-registered vehicles in the marketplace,” said Simon Henstock, BCA UK chief operating officer remarketing.
BCA also said that older cars were coming under pressure.
“Valuing older and poorer quality cars accurately is crucial to tempt the buyers. The price of scrap has fallen and this has effectively removed the safety net for these low value vehicles.”
“The relatively mild weather has also meant that the seasonally strong performance for the 4×4 sector hasn’t really reached expectations.
“January saw a well-balanced marketplace in terms of supply and demand, with plenty of appetite for used cars across the board.
“However, average prices dropped slightly compared to the back end of 2015 and while there is a lot of demand for good retail quality stock, there are challenges at the extremities of the market.”
Average values for dealer part-exchange cars improved in January following two months of decline. Values rose by 1.6% to £4,316.
The average value of a used car in January fell 2.1% to £7,877 compared to December. Year-on-year, average values were down by 1%.
