Used car prices stabilise in 2022 after 12 months of massive growth

Used car prices appear to be stabilising following a year of massive growth, though experts warn this could be temporary.

Supply issues in the new car market have driven many buyers to second-hand vehicles, causing demand to outstrip supply and push prices up.

However, analysis of the 20 most-searched-for used cars on the CarGurus buying platform indicates that values plateaued in the first quarter of 2022, reducing by an average of 3.8 per cent between the end of December 2021 and the end of March 2022.

This is compared with an incredible year-on-year increase of almost 35 per cent in March.

According to the website’s data, 17 of the top 20 cars decreased in value slightly in Q1 2022, with the Ford Kuga and Focus seeing the biggest price drops of just over eight per cent each.

The Toyota Yaris (3.4 per cent), Range Rover Sport (2.1 per cent) and Mercedes-Benz E-Class (0.8 per cent) were the only cars in the list that saw average prices rise.

Kevin Roberts, director of industry insights and analytics at CarGurus, said: “While many of the most searched used cars experienced a slight decrease in price in Q1, the outlook for the used car market in 2022 remains uncertain.

“Although prices might be starting to cool, we are still a long way off pre-Covid level costs. Given the continued supply chain issues that are impacting the automotive industry, we are likely to see further disruptions on the path towards a new normal.”

Figures released this week by industry body the Society of Motor Manufacturers and Traders show that UK used car sales were up just over five per cent in the first quarter of 2022, compared with a lockdown-hit 2021.

Although the figures are a positive step, they are still down 12.2 per cent on the first quarter of 2019, before the pandemic hit.