The firm’s data shows that national fleet vendors saw selling prices of their vehicles at Manheim’s auctions rise by an average of £402 (6.3%) in April, to £6,799, reflecting strong demand among consumers for quality used cars, with known provenance and good service history. 

For younger, lower-mileage manufacturer fleet stock, average auction selling prices softened in April, falling by an average of £1,432, down to £12,497, likely reflecting the pressure on dealers to achieve targets for new car sales and the attractiveness of PCP financing for car buyers, according to Manheim.

The auction specialist added that overall wholesale data shows a £195 (3.5%) drop in average selling prices compared to March. Conversion rates appeared to remain strong in April, with Manheim’s data showing an average of 9.5 days in stock for vehicles sold at auction – an increase of less than one day from March.

The average mileage of vehicles sold at Manheim’s auctions continued to decrease, with an average odometer reading in April of 63,733, down 2.2% from March. A fall in driven distances was recorded for all vendor stock, with manufacturer fleet vehicles showing the biggest monthly drop in mileage of 11.1%.