An increasing ‘obsession’ with swifter used car sales online is potentially compromising sales prices, according to Shoreham Vehicle Auctions (SVA).

SVA says the minimum time needed between uploading a used car for viewing online and going under the gavel is three days

The remarketing specialist said some used cars are arriving from vendors and immediately uploaded into the next online auction – which is cutting down on the pre-marketing time need for used cars to gain attention from buyers.

And whilst this approach can reduce stocking days and speed up sale times, benefiting cashflow, vendors risk under market prices for cars by not attracting enough bids.

“It’s the challenge of selling used cars online. If the images of the car are uploaded online it can be added to a sale within a few hours of arriving on site,” explained Alex Wright, SVA’s managing director.

“In our opinion the minimum time needed between uploading a used car for viewing online and going under the gavel is three days.

“That leaves enough time for a cross section of buyers to view the car and we can generate enough competitive bids to ensure the vendor achieves the best price,” he added.

Wright stressed that competitive bidding is the secret to achieving the best prices.

“Online also seems to have generated an obsession for speed of sale which the bean counters love. We hope behaviours change when physical bidding comes back to complement online in future months,” he outlined.