Dealers are turning to online car and van sales in order to pursue a faster turnaround of stock to fight margin erosion.

iVendi's chief executive James Tew (pictured) said dealers who are seeing their per-unit profit come under pressure increasingly see online as a means to increase volumes.

Tew said: “Recent research from iVendi covering 12,500 transactions showed that 35% of car sales could potentially happen entirely online.

“They were sold without the need for any dealer contact - requiring no part exchange, being sold at the vehicle’s windscreen price and using the dealer’s online finance.

“Some people will tell you that there are no genuine online car sales happening in the UK. This is simply not true, as you can see from our sample, which also suggests that many more car sales could happen online, if dealers provided the option.

“What smarter dealers are now starting to realise is that, at a time when margins are under pressure, online sales are a way to build volume and fight profit erosion."