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BARGAIN HUNTIN

19th January 2006
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As an operator you owe it to yourself and your bank balance to find the best deals in every aspect of the business. Trailers are no exception, and the used trade has a lot to offer in this sector. Kevin Swallow reports.

The nature of trailer ownership mirrors the pattern of truck acquisitions.With tight weekly budgets and/or financial directors wanting less ownership responsibility, many new trailers are being financed rather than owned outright by the operator.

This practice offers more flexibility to meet changing contacts and work commitments, and operators have discovered the used market is an ideal source of late-year trailers at knock-down prices.

The moving parts on trailers are easily replaceable and unless they've been poorly maintained, used examples really can be as good as new However, the market is dorninated by curtainsiders. boxes, skellies and flatbedstippers, tankers and reefers are generally carefully specified by their first owners and might not meet company or operational requirements.

Many dealers shy away from over-specced products, so you'll need to contact specialist suppliers for these.

The used trailer network is a fairly small environment: annual UK demand is estimated to fall between 4.(X1) and 6,000 units a year.

Lawrence David Trailer Sales was set up last March to bid for a share of that market. Despite the factory link, Brian Parkinson, director of used sales. is happy to handle all makes of used trailer. either in part exchange for new Lawrence David trailers or as straightforward purchases.

Last year it sold 350 used trailersin this, its first full year. Parkinson aims to boost that figure to 750.

Used trailers come from operators, finance houses and via contacts dating back to Parkinson's days withTransamerica Leasing. The most common are curtainsiders with the emphasis on taller products at 4.5m and above.

Dedicated dealerships Many used trailer outlets forge links with dedicated truck dealerships for extra business. Traders who only handle tractors will negotiate for the trailers as well but will offer them to the used trailer network, rather than establishing their own trailer sales operations.

An increasing number of used trailers are being sold at auctions in two main age groups: 3-5 and 10-15 years old. Older and underspecified products tend to go overseas, leaving traders and end users to battle it out for the late-year stock, especially triaxle models.

Dry-freight trailers arc most common at auctions, followed by curtainsiders and fridges. Peak demand is in autumn as operators gear up for the Christmas rush. but February is the prime buying season as companies de-fleet after the Yuletide bonanza.

Jeremy Marte11,11G V and plant manager at Manheirn. Auctions, says trailers usually sell at the first attempt. Evidently older flatbeds E curtainsiders are being snapped up and converted to meet their new owners rel.] ui ments: "Post-1995 curtainsiders do well an any fridge trailers from 1999 perform too low-loaders are always popular."

At trailer dealerships, the buying trend 1 tipped over into finance deals. SDC North MD Rod Pybus says about 60% of used trailers are financed, over two or three yea. With new trailers, most deals are set up for three, four or five years.

In 2003, about 40% of deals would have been financed. SDC Northern acts as a cre broker and will tailor deals to suit its custoi ers."We ask customers what they are willit pay per week and make the deal according that," Pybus explains."Interest rates are at around 4% across the board."

SDC Northern, like many trailer dealers selling back into the UK haulage industry, focuses on trailers of up to five years old bu also stocks older products in good conditio


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