Both fuel types rose in price by 3.1% (£523) and 2.8% (£478) to £17,090 and £17,103 respectively as wholesale sales rose to meet increased consumer demand for low and zero emission used cars. This is the first time used EV prices have risen in 2024.
At the same time used diesels and petrol cars reached price parity in Q3 at £6,843 and £6,944 respectively following a fall in petrol prices of -5.4% £498).
Although there was just £13 price difference between used hybrids and EVs in Q3 their age and mileage profile were very different with hybrids averaging 47 months and 42,487 miles and 38 months and 29,543 miles for EVs. The same with petrols and diesels which averaged 107 months/59,495 miles and 106 months and 87,311 miles respectively.
With most hybrids and EVs being onboarded by company car drivers from new, this rise in demand helped contribute to average fleet prices increasing by 2.4% (£373) in Q3 to £15,455. With Tesla Model 3s now selling for less than £20,000, used EVs have helped keep conversion rates and prices across the ex-fleet sector very consistent over the past six months.
Aston Barclay’s regular fleet auctions continue to attract the largest number of buyers, as the higher graded stock can be quickly added to forecourts and sold within a week or two.
Although there are signs of more nearly new cars reaching the market, predominantly with EVs, these trends haven’t been reflected at auction as volumes of 0-24-month cars fell in Q3. This helped contribute to used prices rising by 5.0% (£1,047) to £21,590 in Q3.
“The used market continues to change and with used EVs and hybrids and used diesels and petrols reaching price parity this should translate into a more straightforward used car buying decision for consumers,” said Nick Thompson, Aston Barclay’s chief customer officer.
“It is another positive result for the EV landscape this quarter, with stock volumes and consumer demand both increasing. This spells good news for the leasing companies where the volume of used EVs coming back from contracts continues to rise,” he added.