Forecourt finance remains the most popular way to buy a car. Over half (52.9%) of motorists used motor finance from dealers to buy their new cars in the last year. This is almost 3 percentage points up on the year before.
Figures in May showed the smallest drop in the number of new cars bought by consumers on dealer finance since September 2008. Volumes for this market in May 2009 were 18% lower than in May 2008.
Commenting on May’s motor finance figures, Geraldine Kilkelly, Head of Research and Chief Economist at the The Finance and Leasing Association (FLA), said:
“It is encouraging that May’s data showed the smallest drop for eight months. This reflects the great finance deals currently on offer to help consumers buy a new or used car.
But if dealers are to continue to offer competitive finance to customers on the forecourt, motor finance companies need to be able to access affordable wholesale funding. The Government needs to look again at providing access to reasonably priced funding for all lenders in this market.”
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