USED car values fell by 1.7% in December as demand weakened according to cap hpi, making it the weakest since November 2017.
December saw the usual drop off in retail and trade demand, with some vendors deciding to hang on to stock, with the aim of selling for higher prices in January. Any fall in values, however, has to be seen in the context of an exceptionally strong year overall in 2018.
Electric vehicles showed the strongest average performance with values rising by 0.3% at three years and 60,000 miles. Models such as the Renault Zoe, Nissan e-NV200 and Nissan Leaf continued to be in demand, with prices increasing, while Tesla and BMW models struggled to achieve cap clean prices.
Derren Martin, head of UK valuations at cap hpi said: “The pattern continues for the more affordable electric cars to be sought after, whereas at the higher end finding buyers is more difficult.
“As a new year gets underway, there is often a feeling amongst vendors and buyers that prices will rise through January. Over the past 5-years, the average value movement in our Live product during January has actually been a drop of 0.4%.”
He added: “2018 proved to be the year of the used car. Demand and prices held firm through the year, and many franchised dealers joined independents and car supermarkets in increasing their activity in the used arena. The trend looks set to continue into 2019.”
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