New car sales in Britain rose in May to levels not seen since recession struck. Statistics showed new private vehicle registrations increased by 21% compared to the year before, which puts them higher than any figures seen since 2007, according to the Society of Motor Manufacturers and Traders.
Main boost from private sales
Including private sales, fleet and business cars, 180,111 new registrations were recorded in May, for an overall increase of 11%, with growth largely driven by the private ownership sector. Business and fleet sales actually dropped by 9.2% compared to pre-recession sales levels. Whole year sales from January to the close of May 2013 reached 948,666, for growth of 9.3% on the same period last year.
There were few surprises among the models of car driving the growth, with Ford’s Fiesta taking the top spot, followed by the slightly larger Ford Focus and then the Vauxhall Corsa, Volkswagen Golf, Vauxhall Astra, Nissan Qashqai, BW 3 Series, VW Polo and Peugeot 208, with the Audi A3 rounding out the top ten. However, petrol cars are making a comeback after years of lagging behind diesels. Concern over diesel particulate filter issues on cars performing low mileage on shorter journeys saw petrol vehicle sales surge by 13.7% compared to a 4.5% growth in diesel sales. Diesel and petrol still make up by far the majority of sales, with only 1.1% of buyers opting for alternative fuels.
Car finance helps many people buy a new car
The SMMT attributes the strongest growth in car sales for the month of May since 2005 in part to a range of cheap finance options. The organisation points out that whilst the British figures show an encouraging return of consumer confidence, Continental Europe is still suffering a slump in new car sales that is leaving auto manufacturers cautious about long term growth prospects. In 2012, new car sales fell by 19.9% in Italy and 14% in France.
The buoyancy of May’s new car sales figures comes after April this year showed the strongest growth in the used car finance sector for two years, according to the Finance and Leasing Association. The quantity of used cars bought from dealerships on finance in April increased 26% by value and 22% by volume in comparison to the same month last year. New car finance was also on the up, increasing by 37% over April 2012.
Car finance deals driving growth
The statistics show that 226,082 used cars and 227,153 new cars were bought on finance in April. Along with a series of attractive deals, the release of new registration plates in March could have helped to propel sales the following month.
I had to go down the route of car finance and was able to secure a deal with a number of attractive incentives including discounted insurance, roadside assistance and a generous warranty and service package. Brokers can search for the most suitable package for your circumstances from among the range of finance deals available.
Whilst buying a car with ready cash may give purchasers more bargaining power when it comes to driving down the price, there is a huge range of car finance deals available depending upon the level of your deposit, your credit rating and the kind of deal you are looking to secure.
