The start point for the best source of fleet information |
FLEET IN 2013: Experts give their views
Date: 16 April 2013
Ed Hummel, sales director, Glass's
Sum up last year
We use the auction houses as the basis for reporting and tracking wholesale prices. In October, the average price of all fleet cars was down 3% and dealer part-exchanges were down by 2%. That sounds negative, but what we're actually seeing is a pattern of price improvements taking the year as a whole compared with previous years. If we talked about disposal prices on three-year-old ex-fleet cars, they were up 11.7% year-on-year in October. That's an increase of about £1000 per car, and so for asset managers of leasing and fleet companies, there has been a windfall bonus that was not anticipated in their wildest dreams at the beginning of the year. Auctions have seen a year-on-year increase in conversion rates since mid-January too.
What was your biggest worry going into it and were you right to worry about it?
I expected the car market to fall significantly, but have been pleasantly surprised to see it grow, albeit with an increasing number of manufacturer self-registrations.
And your biggest worry for 2013?
A triple dip recession.
What is your biggest opportunity in 2013?
To connect with more customers through new products, delivered through a new customer-facing team.
What one piece of advice would you give business car operators?
I'd advise them not to use a single source for used values and whole-life cost data.
