Online remarketing company Autorola is predicting that growth in its own sector of used car sales will double in the B2B sector within the next five years.

Currently around 15% of used cars are sold online trade to trade in the UK, but that will increase to nearer 30% by 2016 according to the company’s prediction.

Autorola says that doesn’t mean the end of the physical auction. But, all auction companies are predicted to be selling a greater share of vehicles online.

Peter Groftehauge, Autorola’s chief executive, said: “You can see some realigning of physical auction networks, but that is about reduced volumes of used vehicles coming back into the market.

“Their business model is all about volume which is why some of the major sites are being mothballed, but the remaining sites combined with growth of online providers will fuel this online growth.”

Groftehauge said the difficult economic conditions has meant dealer groups, car supermarkets and independent traders have been running their businesses with fewer people, which means online auctions make it easier to bid across three of four online channels as well as physical channels in a single day without leaving the office.

In 2011 Autorola estimates it will transact over 220,000 cars through its online platforms across 17 European countries, around 10,000 in the UK.

In five years it estimates this will rise to half a million vehicles in Europe, with the UK and eastern Europe likely to be the main growth areas.