Point-of-sale consumer new car finance market saw new business grow 20% by value and 14% by volume in January 2016, compared with the same month last year, figures released by the Finance & Leasing Association show.
The percentage of private new car sales financed by FLA members through dealerships reached 81.7% in the twelve months to January, up from 81.4% in the twelve months to December 2015.
The point-of-sale consumer used car finance market also reported new business growth in January, of 15% by value and 12% by volume.
Commenting on the figures, Geraldine Kilkelly, head of research and chief economist at the FLA, said: “These figures show a strong start to 2016 for the point-of-sale consumer car finance market. The recent growth in this market has to a large extent mirrored a reduction in the use of unsecured personal loans, while also reflecting changing consumer attitudes towards car ownership.
“The increase in popularity of personal contract purchase and hire purchase means that the majority of car finance taken out by consumers is secured against the car.”
| Table 1: Cars bought on finance by consumers through dealerships | ||||||
| New business | Jan 2016 | % change on prev. year | 3 months to Jan 2016 | % change on prev. year | 12 months to Jan 2016 | % change on prev. year |
| New cars | ||||||
| Value of advances (£m) | 995 | +20 | 3,353 | +23 | 16,371 | +16 |
| Number of cars | 59,990 | +14 | 197,790 | +18 | 991,629 | +11 |
| Used cars | ||||||
| Value of advances (£m) | 1,093 | +15 | 2,909 | +16 | 12,260 | +14 |
| Number of cars | 104,864 | +12 | 271,408 | +13 | 1,158,652 | +10 |
| Table 2: Cars bought on finance by businesses | ||||||
| New business | Jan 2016 | % change on prev. year | 3 months to Jan 2016 | % change on prev. year | 12 months to Jan 2016 | % change on prev. year |
| New cars | ||||||
| Number of cars | 33,566 | -2 | 106,204 | -3 | 507,893 | +6 |
| Used cars | ||||||
| Number of cars | 2,536 | -21 | 9,398 | -1 | 38,327 | -5 |
