Guest opinion: used car sales booming - but buyers spending less per vehicle

The Society of Motor Manufacturers and Traders (SMMT) figures released last week stated that 18 million vehicles were sold in the first half of 2016.

This represents an 8% increase on second-hand vehicle sales in same period of 2015.

This was the first time that any half-year sales figures have risen above the four million mark.

This growth very much mirrors the huge growth we’re experiencing as the UK’s most visited specialist motor finance website.

Further insight into consumer financing habits via our site also revealed that while more people are buying used cars they are spending less per vehicle than during the same period last year.

From January to July 2016, the amount each person borrowed from us to purchase a car was on average 6% less than in 2015.

The average loan amount was £6,700 versus £7,107 in 2015.

“Similarly, the amount of deposit that both men and women put down during this period also decreased, but the biggest drop was among women who put on average 44% less deposit down when compared to 2015.”

Carfinance247’s report has also highlighted some other trends with regards to male versus female buying habits during the first half of 2016.

On average men spent £857 more than women on a used vehicle.

The average loan amount taken out by men in the first half of 2016 was £6,943
The average loan amount taken out by women in the same period was £6,086

The number of women that financed a vehicle via Carfinance247 in the first half of 2016 compared to the same time period in 2015 increased by 147% where the number of men increased by 128%