Used EV prices surge

USED EV PRICES CONTINUE TO CHARGE UP

Healthy demand for used EVs is great on one level – but not if you can’t get any...

Prices of used electric cars continue to rise following the demise of the government’s plug-in car grant, which has seen the list price of some new EVs increase by up to £5,000. It shows a healthy appetite for used EVs and illustrates how a shift away from incentivised EV purchases doesn’t appear to be hampering the appetite for plug-in cars, especially among premium brands.

Stuart Pearson, BCA’s chief operations officer for UK remarketing, said: ‘There continues to be improving levels of demand from trade buyers for electric vehicles, and rising values reflect that the market is more receptive to alternative fuels. But these values also reflect the rising numbers of premium EVs handled by BCA – Tesla, Jaguar, Audi, BMW, MercedesBenz, Polestar – in what remains a low-volume sector.

‘Knowledge and confidence in the product has definitely increased. However, an accurate valuation remains key in a dynamic market and it is important to use market insight to ensure the vehicle is optimised for sale.’

The average price of a used electric car rose from £18,500 to £28,500 between June 2021 and June 2022, although this is as much to do with the brand as it is pricing trends. As the number of used Teslas catches up with the number of used Nissan Leafs, it was always going to happen – but even so, consumer demand in the face of spiralling petrol costs has seen even mainstream models make huge gains.

Martin Potter, group MD of vehicle remarketer Aston Barclay, said: ‘In recent months, we have seen some cars at between 12-18 months make close to or above retail money. That applies across the board, not just to premium brands.’

Meanwhile, MG Motor UK’s shock announcement in June that it would stop taking orders for its MG5 EV and ZS EV has led to used prices rocketing. With the company’s 2022 allocation of new EVs now sold out, to the dismay of its dealer network, used prices are soaring as the models remain one of the most accessible plug-in models on the market.

The move has seen used prices of the ZS EV achieve above retail for nearly new cars, while even 2019 cars have been selling for £23,000 – almost what they cost new.

But one disgruntled dealer principal at an MG dealership, who asked not to be named, is furious at the situation. ‘The product is great, just what the market wants,’ he told us. ‘But that’s no good when you can’t get cars, and while I get the worldwide shortage of new vehicles at the moment, we were made promises when we joined MG that haven’t been kept.

‘We put a huge investment into our premises to meet their standards, we have EV-trained sales and servicing staff and we have hundreds of customers who want the cars, but we’re getting no information at all about when we can supply them with one. So yes, of course used ones are strong money, but the reality is that we don’t have any left.’

We approached the MG Motor UK press office for a comment on the dealer’s concerns, but at the time of going to press it hadn’t provided a reply.

Dealers for many other brands are facing the same challenges, and it doesn’t look like availability of EVs, new or used, is going to improve any time soon. The road to 2030 may well be a little bumpier than policymakers are expecting….

In recent months, we have seen some cars at between 12-18 months make close to or above retail money.

Martin Potter Aston Barclay