During the BCA Commercial Pulse in December, it was announced that the value for average light commercial vehicle (LCV) continued to rise as the headline figure reached a new record level of £6,976. As the year came to a close, there was also noticed a decline in age and mileage, continued along with seasonal factors coming into play.

Up until the festive period the buyers had been active and the shortened trading window created more focused demand. Values remain ahead year by year, up by £580, which is the equivalent of a 9.0% increase over the period.

“December is a shortened trading period and creates focused buyer demand. There was plenty of interest for any vehicles with a retail type specification, an unusual configuration or special equipment and, as always, any vehicle suitable for the delivery or courier markets was sought after. However, any vehicle in poor condition struggled to get the buyers attention unless it was keenly valued. Early signs are the market has returned strongly in January, with good attendance at sales since the turn of the year and plenty of activity from online bidders,” said Duncan Ward, LCV Operations Director at BCA.

The fleet and lease LCV sector only saw a small improvement in numbers in December, with a rise of just £33 compared to 2016. Coming to a total of £7,760 it was still the second highest figure on record. The retained value against MRP (Manufacturer Recommended Price) remained stable at 38.09%.

Part-exchanged LCV values fell by £293 (6.4%) to £4,215 in December as a result of a shorter trading period, compared to the previous three months of flourishing values. Although every year values go up by approximately £220 (5.5%), the age and mileage in 2017 were lower and that had an impact on average values.

The nearly-new LCV values stood at £17,056 in December because of the low volumes reaching the market, seasonal pressures, and the model mix factor.