A new £5 million light commercial vehicle (LCV) auction centre in Goole has officially opened for business with demand and prices high on the back of a strong used market.
Motor Auction Group (MAG) had announced its acquisition and plans for the site at the start of the year.
It sold more than 200 used LCVs in the first two sales attracting 150 online buyers from as far afield as the south coast and Scotland, and more than 100 physical buyers keen to view the auction for the very first time.
The first sale saw a 100% conversion achieved for its top five vendors and an overall conversion rate of 87% while the second saw its three new vendors sell all its vehicles while the overall sale achieved an 82% conversion rate.
The Goole auction attracted a good mix of vehicles in the early sales, says MAG, from sub-£1,000 panel vans to highly-specced pick-ups that made more than £30,000.
“We are pleased with the performance of our launch sales,” said Justin Lane, MAG’s group operations director.
“We got our first sale live and operational within less than a week of transferring the LCV operation over from our Bawtry site.
“Our refurbishment and valeting team are live on site and our logistics partners have plenty of space to deliver and collect vehicles.
“Feedback from the physical buyers has been how easy it is to get here and park.
“Other than a few minor items like fitting a new canopy and some internal snagging the site was live just two months after we bought it.”
“We can’t have asked for a better first few weeks on site,” he added.
Commenting on current used LCV market trends, Geoff Flood, MAG’s head of LCV said: “The used LCV market remains strong for any vehicle that is between three and five years old in good condition physically and mechanically.
“The current worldwide economic challenges are working in the favour of the market as buyers are happier to invest in a used vehicle at £10,000 rather than take out finance to fund a new vehicle at £40,000.
“Buyers continue to stay away from vehicles that are in poor physical condition or that need parts due to the delay in getting a vehicle on their forecourt.
“Some specialist vehicles like lutons have been a little slow of late, but generally Q2 looks set to continue in the same positive vein as Q1,” he added.
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Gareth has more than 20 years’ experience as a journalist having started his career in local newspapers in the 1990s. Prior to joining Fleet News in 2008, he worked in the public sector as a media advisor and is currently news editor at Fleet News.
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