August price rises set new record

Auto Trader’s Retail Price Index recorded the sharpest monthly price rise ever last month.

The index takes data from about 900,000 vehicle sales. It found the average retail price of a used car last month was £13,705, which marks a 6.1% year-on-year increase on a like-for-like basis.

It was also the fifth consecutive month of growth, and the steepest month-on-month increase since the 4.6% recorded in July.

Meanwhile, Auto Trader has seen traffic continue to rise, from 64 million in June, 64.4 million in July and 67.1 million in August.

Auto Trader’s director of data and insight, Richard Walker, said: “Over the last five months we’ve observed a very positive trajectory for used car prices, driven largely by supply challenges and extremely strong consumer led demand.

“Although some of the supply constraints had begun to ease with the reopening of online auctions, many of our customers are reporting that they continue to face difficulty in sourcing wholesale stock. Combined with the massive acceleration in demand on our marketplace, whilst the trajectory may begin to level off slightly, we’re confident prices will remain buoyant over the coming months.

“It’s very reassuring to see such huge demand in the market as we enter into what will be a key month for the industry on its road to recovery. September is typically the second highest monthly volume for new car, but as March was cut short and with such exceptionally strong consumer metrics, it may very well represent the largest sales month of 2020.”