HIGH mileage fleets could be forced to cut replacement cycles as the industry clamps down on clocking, experts have warned. They say the residual values of high mileage fleet cars have for years been kept healthy by the number of traders willing to buy them in order to clock them before selling them to private buyers.

However, as mileage databases become more widespread, many clockers look set to be forced out of the market and the prices of cars which have covered more than 100,000 miles could plummet. CAP chief economist Mark Cowling said: 'In the future three years/80,000 miles could be the psychological barrier for private buyers. What we will have is a more relevant depreciation and, from a high mileage point of view, those who run cars for, say, three years/150,000 miles will be caught out - but they do have a couple of years' more planning time before that will happen.'

Cowling said that this would only happen if recording mileages became mandatory - or if all the mileage databases shared information. He added that at the moment unscrupulous traders could phone all the databases for a check on a car and the chances were that at least one would come up as clear.