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Values are on the up
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7 I
Prices for second-hand trucks are rising, and it's a trend set to continue for the rest of the year.
Words: Steve Banner Used truck prices look set to rise between now and the end of the year, say dealers, with some even reporting that they are starting to see increases now.
"I think they're going up. In fact, they're definitely getting stronger," reports Paul Prewett, general manager, used sales, at east of England Scania dealership TruckEast.
"I'm almost frightened to say that we're seeing the green shoots of recovery in case they die on us, but things are definitely improving. Confidence is returning."
While Matt Hammond, used vehicle sales manager at West Thurrock, Essex, dealership Harris DAF, has yet to register an increase in retail prices, he still believes an upswing cannot be far away.
Significant
"I think we'll start to see a rise from October," he predicts. don't think it will he enormous, but it will certainly be significant."
He is already finding that the cost of the wholesale stock he needs to purchase is increasing, and the rise will ultimately have to be passed on to customers. "For example, I've been buying in some 04 and 05-registered 75-tormers," he says "They were costing me £5,000 each two months or so ago, but now I'm paying about £6,000.
"We're having to give a bit more to buy the right trucks, so we're having to charge a bit more," says Prewett.
The shortage of desirable vehicles is becoming more marked, reveals Hammond, with clean, retailable DAF XF95 6x2 Space Cabs with sensible mileages not quite so easy to track down as they once were.
"There are fewer repossessions around, too," he comments.
Dealers believe that there is now evidence of some improvement in the economy as whole, and, as a consequence, operators are more willing to commit themselves to acquiring vehicles As demand goes up, however, so will the price tag.
"I'm getting calls from hauliers who saw us advertising certain trucks a few weeks ago and want to know if we've still got them," Prewett says. "They wouldn't have had the confidence to think about buying those vehicles five or six weeks back, but they have it now."
Cautious
Despite talk of green shoots, many more cautious businesses are hanging on to their existing trucks rather than disposing of them and buying new ones. This means that there arc fewer second-hand examples around, which, again, means upward pressure on prices. They could be forced up even further as hauliers realise how much new trucks ordered from the factory rather than from stock are going to cost thanks to currency movements: and they may decide to buy used instead.
Not that operators are willing to throw their money around if they do not have to, says European Vehicle Sales (EVS) managing director Anthony Wright.
"The ones we usually see have a budget of about £15,000 to play with, but that will still get you a lot of truck," he observes. -It will certainly get you an 04,54, or 05-plate CF85 with some decent specifications."
A fleet-specification 04-plate CF85 that has seen service with a major parcels or logistics company and has covered between 700,000km and 800,000km will be even cheaper, at about 19,000, he adds.
Even dealers who doubt that prices are on an upward curve in the UK, agree that they arc no longer dropping.
-They've flattened out now," says Paul Diamond, used sales specialist at Mercedes-Benz dealership Road Range, which has sites in Liverpool, Llandudno and on Deeside.
"The big falls have stopped and confidence is returning to the market," he says.
"Prices have definitely levelled off over the past three months," says Stuart Wolstenholme, used sales manager at the Middleton, Manchester. branch of Scania dealership West Pennine Trucks. "Even DAF CFs and Xfs are no longer in freefall."
Even if hauliers are having to spend a bit more to get the vehicle they want, it is still not the case that money is no object.
"We're finding that £20,000 is as much as many operators want to spend," Wolstenholme says.
Nor will they be short-changed if that is the extent of their budget. "About £17,000 will buy you a 53-plate R124 470 Topline 6x2 with everything on it, including light bars, twin exhaust stacks, air-conditioning, a fridge and a microwave," he says.
Not a new vehicle, granted, but still an attractive buy if it has been regularly maintained and has a full service history.
Pick and choose
At present, Wolstenholme is having no difficulty finding stock. "We can still pick and choose," he remarks.
Prewett believes that prices could rise steeply in two years' time because today's historically-low new truck sales mean that far fewer late-registered models will be coming onto the used market in 2011.
Will that result in a re-run of 2007, when prices soared to di2zying heights? He hopes not. Exaggerated peaks followed by deep troughs destroy confidence and sew confusion, and that is not what the market needs.•