Used car prices up 27%, says dealership
The average price of a used car has risen by more than a quarter, according to one of the UK’s largest car dealerships, Lookers (LOOK.L)
The Altrincham-based business said that used car prices rose 27% in the first half of 2022, compared to the same period a year earlier.
Although the number of used cars sold by the company fell, they were still able to make nearly £200m in revenue, up nearly 17% from a year ago.
The company says thousands of customers have added themselves to the waiting list to get a car. They also claim to have had 22,000 orders from retail customers at the end of June, compared to 9,000 in June 2021.
Read more: UK car production rises for first time in almost a year
Lookers’ revenues for new vehicles did drop though, by 5.6% to £970.2m. This was due to a decrease in the number of fleet vehicles that it rents out to companies.
Chief executive, Mark Raban said: “Our first half financial performance was very strong, against an exceptional comparative period, despite ongoing inflationary pressure and vehicle supply disruption.
“We have also made excellent progress with our strategic priorities.
“We remain focused on our customers and improving our proposition to ensure the process of buying or leasing a car is as easy and simple as possible, particularly in the current challenging economic environment.”
Pre-tax profit hit £49.9m in the first half, from £50.4m a year before, when Lookers had benefited from £12.7m of Government Covid-19 support. Overall revenue rose 3.6% to £2.2bn.
The company said that it would repay business rates relief of £1.5m that it got during the pandemic.
Raban added: “Whilst mindful of the pressures facing consumers, we are confident in our strategic direction and retain our expectations for the remainder of the year.”
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