Manheim saw strong demand from buyers once again in April, driving record-breaking average sale prices and conversion rates.  

The auction lanes recorded their strongest ever average van sale prices in April, up 5% from March to £5,952 and up 14% year-on-year, despite the month also seeing volumes hit a peak for 2018, up 11% from March.

The age and mileage profile of vehicles passing through the auction lanes also held steady, with average age decreasing to 61.2 months (down from 64.6 in March), while mileage also decreased 4% to 77,419. 

Vehicles also sold at their fastest pace on record throughout the month, at an average of just 14 days for all vehicles sold, a year-on-year decrease of seven days (down from 21 in April 2017) and two days fewer than March (16 days). 

Matthew Davock, head of LCV at Manheim, said: "April's strong performance once again points to a superheated market place.

“The results continue to exceed expectations and prove demand and buyer appetite for prime stock is still at a high, especially for vehicles in the £5,000-£5,999 and £8,000-£9,999 price brackets.

“Vendors should be aware that above average stock, with the right specification and less than 80,000 miles on the clock is achieving a 3-5% premium on top of current market guide measures as buyers compete for the best stock on the market."

More than 1,520 unique LCV buyers purchased one or more vans at Manheim events throughout April, and its online Simulcast platform continues to grow, it said.

Over a third (36%) of all vans sold in the month were bought by online customers – a 4% increase year-on-year - and it expects digital adoption to continue to increase.

Davock concluded: "Looking ahead, we expect buyer appetite to remain constant, all be it with a little softening against the prior months' record-breaking highs.

“Vendors will do well to prepare for this, using the strong demand for well-conditioned stock as a key part of their sales strategy in addition to pricing damaged stock in line with true and realistic market value.

“We believe vendors that can provide the highest quality vehicles at pace will benefit from strong conversion rates and increased buyer loyalty."

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