Used car sales are down more than 400,000 units year-on-year as buyers look to avoid inflated prices
Others in the car industry agree that less disposable income as a result of the cost-of-living crisis was also prompting owners to hold on to their cars for longer, instead of looking to upgrade.
Declines were recorded in each month, with falls in April , May and June . Overall, 3,535,035 cars have been sold on the used market so far this year, down 8.3% on 2021 . It wasn’t all doom and gloom, with battery-electric vehicles recording a 57.1% rise in sales , while plug-in hybrids held relatively stable with 1% growth to 15,633 sales. Hybrids, meanwhile, declined by 4% to 43,019 sales.
Mike Hawes, SMMT chief executive, said, “It was inevitable that the squeeze on new car supply would filter through to the used market.