Used van values “bounced back” in May

The average price of a used van sold at auction increased by £510 in May, according to Cox Automotive.

During May van average selling prices continued to demonstrate strong robustness with high demand from fleet, OEM and rental customers at Manheim. The overall selling prices performing ahead of the same period in 2021 and were 62.2% stronger than pre pandemic averages.

Matthew Davock, director of Commercial Vehicles at Cox Automotive, is advising caution, however.

He said: “With all the current headwinds facing the automotive sector, you can understand why caution remains the overall buzzword for franchise and independent dealers today. That said, improvements in the data for May demonstrate that the market is holding firm.

“We have seen LCV guide values decrease by 3.7% on average going into June at three years, 60,000 mileage LCV product; the largest single movement in a month for a decade and the third month in a row where we have seen LCV guide values reduce. It sounds negative but this should not come as a major shock, since guide value reductions were very much the norm during pre-covid times. Therefore, this is a sign that the market is returning to something resembling normal levels, in some respects.”

While demand remains healthy, available stock reached new highs for age and mileage, largely due to an influx of pandemic-worn vans being returned to the market. LCV mileages reached their second highest point of the year during May, with returned vans having an average of 88,679 miles on the clock, at 65.2 months old. Compared to the same period in 2021, vans are on average three months older, and with 15,370 more miles on the clock today at Manheim

Euro 5 and 6 stock continues to sell well, with 59% of sales Euro 6 products, and 41% Euro 5 throughout May. Selling prices in both segments remained robust throughout the month, with Euro 6 vans achieving £323 more on average but age and mileage reducing by one month and 3,966 miles respectively. Euro 5 prices also rose by an average of £56 compared to April, with age also slightly increasing by two months at 96 months, and mileage reducing by 3,217 miles to 114,915 miles on average.

Davock added: ““With the SMMT headlines showing a 25% reduction in new LCV transactions, it is highly likely we will see further shortages in the wholesale market during the months to come.

“While the wholesale LCV market has not had the buoyancy we saw last year, guide values reducing more in line with market conditions will help ensure it remains resilient during the summer period heading our way.”