NEWS

Welcome to our May edition of the Newsletter. I hope you will enjoy reading what’s happening in our Group.

Our MarketPlace director Morten Holmsten shares an update on how online used car sales are performing. Online bids were up 31% in April and 8% in May from dealers who are chasing 8% fewer used cars on our MarketPlace platform.

Semiconductor shortages impacts new car production
Just as the market is starting to settle down after Covid so the global shortage of semiconductors is causing new car shortages which in turn is fuelling an increase in used car sales. Expect to hear more about how this will affect the used car market over the coming months.

Italy’s used car market is very much back on its feet from being one of the first countries to be impacted by Covid. And now we can announce a very exciting partnership with Quattroruote Professional which publishes Infocar Italy’s leading used portal for consumers and the motor trade.

An exciting partnership in Italy
We will be providing them with our INDICATA platform, and we will be adding Quattroruote Professional database to our platform, including the vehicle licence plate recognition system. This is set to be an exciting partnership over the coming years.

Autorola Denmark is the largest of our 19 subsidiaries and recently it has expanded its de-fleet centre network.

Part of the online revolution
We talk to country manager Thomas Friis Pedersen how the fleet division called Bilsalg has been part of the online revolution from day one and has introduced a new level of service to end of contract processes for private leasing customers.

They have taken a very strong partnership approach to growing the business in Denmark and work for some of the largest leasing, finance, and dealer groups in the country.

Read more about their story in this month’s newsletter. We hope you have a busy and a healthy summer.


Best regards
Peter Grøftehauge (LinkedIn)

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Bilsalg, which is Autorola’s de-fleet vehicle storage and inspection business service in Denmark is expanding its network of locations to cater for increased demand by fleet customers and to further improve/expand its range of services.

Following the opening of its new location in Jutland in May 2020 it has announced the opening of two new locations on Zealand.

They will provide drivers a choice of location to drop off their lease car whether they live in the north of south of Copenhagen.

Bilsalg’s largest compound
At 40,000 square metres the southern Copenhagen site in Køge will become Bilsalg’s biggest compound in Denmark when it opens later in 2021, while Ballerup remains as the Danish head office due to its proximity to most of its customers.

All the new sites are owned and run by Bilsalg which allows them to design and build each one to their own specification and with customer requirements in mind. Many consumers return their personal lease car to Bilsalg centres so making the sites welcoming and having a dedicated reception and inspection area form a key part of the new site refurbishment plans.

Managing the de-fleet process for private drivers
Bilsalg prides itself on providing excellent service to private lease car drivers with its team spending time to explain any damage which the de-fleet inspection has identified, and the relevant costs incurred. Its aim is for the driver to leave their car behind with the knowledge of their responsibilities at the end of their contract which helps fleets collect end of life damage costs from drivers.

Being part of Autorola enables Bilsalg to offer customers other services from business units within the group. All the used cars arriving at each compound are photographed and uploaded to the Autorola MarketPlace online auction platform and sold online. This digital approach means a car only moves once when it has a new owner which reduces the costs as well as transport emissions when compared with physical auctions.

Helping fleets organise their assets
Digitalisation is an import part of our strategy with large fleet owners for many years managing their fleet in Autorola Solutions’ end-of-contract management tool, Fleet Monitor.

Doing the last couple of months, we have implemented our Fleet Assist concept for the small and mid-size fleet owners, which make the de-fleet and remarketing flow more efficient and transparent. The cradle to grave online asset management from Autorola Solutions provides visibility and control of vehicles at every step of their life cycle. It generates powerful data for the asset owner which enables them to make critical vehicle in-life or disposal decisions on their vehicle fleet.

Peace of mind
With many OEMs having their own bank-funded finance companies this proactive approach to asset management gives great peace of mind to everyone concerned. Big Data is very powerful and very comforting when fleets own and carry the risk for thousands of vehicles.

“We have been searching for the right sites to buy for some time and it’s exciting that these plans to grow our compound network are coming to fruition. It means we will be running one of the most modern fleet inspection networks in Denmark enabling us to meet the current and future vehicle inspection and storage needs of our fleet customers,” said Thomas Friis Pedersen, Autorola Denmark’s country manager.

For further information about Bilsalg go to www.bilsalg.dk

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MarketPlace business unit director Morten Holmsten updates us on the fast-changing online remarketing trends across Europe.

The European used car sector is extremely busy with conversion rates and prices at a record high, but the one challenge that all countries are facing is the lack of supply.

We have experienced 8% fewer used cars on our MarketPlace online platform during March and April which reinforces the shortage of stock.

Used car bids are increasing
At the same time, we saw the number of bids rise by 31% in April and 8% in May so there are more dealers in the market to buy a rapidly falling number of used cars. Prices have risen by 3-4% for two to four-year old cars during this period which are the used cars currently in demand with consumers.

Generally, Autorola is at the heart of a major cross border focus as countries balance used car imports and exports to satisfy demand but this is happening less and less currently. Now that the semiconductor problem is growing so the number of new cars being produced has fallen which is restricting the numbers of used cars being de-fleeted by rental and leasing companies.

These sectors generally provide a large percentage of the used stock coming into the market at between 2-4-years old sweet spot in the market, but not so far in 2021.

Semiconductor problems
Talking to the industry we believe that some car makers will be impacted heavily by the semiconductor problem while others will see little or no impact on production. However, until this impact is made more transparent many dealers are holding onto stock rather than considering export.

We expect it will be Q3 before production starts to improve and then there will be many back logs of orders to deal with before new car supply is back to normal across Europe. Turkey for instance is badly impacted as most of its new cars come from Turkish factories, which currently have seen production decimated due to the semiconductor shortage.

Restricted stock levels in Portugal and Poland
Countries like Poland and Portugal have an appetite to import used cars currently to improve stock levels, but their retail markets are not able to pay the higher prices of cars they need to import stock. Therefore, used cars will become even more scarce in the coming months.

According to our latest INDICATA report stock levels in Poland fell by 6.2% from April to May and are 38.3% lower than the start of May 2020, but that will not change anytime soon while prices are so high.

Danish demand for small EVs is high
In Denmark, a change in the luxury tax on EVs is already being experienced with a high demand for smaller, cheaper electric cars like the Tesla 3. The VW iD4 was April’s fastest-selling used car at 27.4 days which puts this trend into perspective.

However, Denmark is one of the few countries where demand for used EVs is high. Many countries are seeing EVs are selling more slowly than petrol, diesel, or hybrids as the price differential between zero emissions and the other fuel types is simply too high. Stock turn of EVs is low which is building growing stocks of used cars in many countries. Perhaps with the high used car demand across Europe and a growing appetite from asset owners to clear these cars off the balance sheet used EV prices will start to fall over the coming months to boost consumer interest.

Helping buyers and vendors deal with market challenges
As always, the European used car market is forever changing and in recent months countries have had to deal with the Covid-19 pandemic, the semiconductor supply issue, and Brexit for the UK. The Autorola Group continues to support vendors and buyers to develop remarketing strategies to deal with these challenges.

We look forward to working with you.

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European used car sales continued to make a strong come back with an increase of 22.1% to the end of April year-to date according to the latest INDICATA Market Watch insights report.

That represents a 7.2% increase above the same month in April 2019, pre-Covid and overall, the used car markets in the 13-country report are showing clear signs of stability and consistent growth.

Stock levels are falling
Dealer stock levels are suffering as sales continue to grow with countries like Turkey and the UK down by 11.2% and 10.0% respectively moving from April into May. Portugal, Poland, and Denmark also suffered a fall in stock while only France (+2.9%) and Sweden (+2.5%) experienced a rise in stock levels during this period.

There remains a shortage of sub-12-month-old cars as ex-rental and dealer demonstrator stock is restricted, and after a short spate of tactical registrations by manufacturers during March these fell back again in April. Stock levels in this sector of the market will also rely on how badly new car supply is impacted by the current semiconductor problem.

Opel/Vauxhall Mokka fastest-selling used car
The three-to-five-year-old sector is where the biggest consumer demand is currently and stock turn is at its best, with the Opel/Vauxhall Mokka proving to be the fastest-selling used car in Europe with a stock turn of 17.6. The VW Golf and Renault Clio meanwhile took the honours for the best-selling used cars in April.

Diesel remains the fastest-selling used car with a stock turn of 6.7x or 54.5 days although sales saw a fall of -6.0% from March. Battery Electric Vehicles (BEVs) experienced sales growth of 2.0% while stock turn was at a low of 3.7x which shows consumers are still coming to terms with paying a high price differential for zero emissions over equivalent models with a petrol or diesel engine.

Used market is settling down
“The used car market seems to be settling down just as we get news of the semiconductor shortage which is challenging new car supply,” explained Andy Shields, INDICATA’s global business unit director.

“Diesel continues to be the fastest-selling fuel type while sales of EVs are rising they are also suffering from the slowest stock turn rates. Price differentials between EVs and equivalent petrol and diesel models remain a constant challenge across many countries which is impacting on stock turn,” he added.

For a free download of the 20-page 13-country report go to www.indicata.com/corona

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INDICATA Italy has signed an exciting new strategic and commercial partnership with Quattroruote Professional which publishes Infocar the country’s leading used portal for consumers and the motor trade.

Thanks to the agreement, the Infocar products of Quattroruote, which provide strategic support for business operators, are enriched by the analysis of live market data provided in real time by INDICATA.

Increasing used car data information
It makes new used car data indicators available, such as the car’s online value, the length of time that the car has been advertised and the variability of the price depending on the geo location of the vehicle.

INDICATA meanwhile has adopted the Quattroruote Professional database to its system, including the vehicle licence plate recognition system, thus increasing the level of precision and reliability of its services.

An exciting new partnership
The result of the partnership is a comprehensive and constantly updated tool which car manufacturers, dealerships and used dealers, financial services companies and owners of corporate fleets, can manage the flow of used vehicles in an even more modern and competitive way.

“In an increasingly dynamic market, our services must evolve. This collaboration with INDICATA helps cement Quattroruote Professional’s leadership in the used vehicle evaluation market. “It also confirms its ability to innovate while maintaining the quality and reliability of our Editorial Domus publishing house, something we have done since 1929,” said Luigi Caligaris, Director of the Editoriale Domus Professional Business Unit.

Adding value to our customers
“INDICATA was launched to provide dynamic used car insights for a wide variety of businesses and six years on we are very proud of this strong partnership between Indicata and Quattroruote Professional. Together we are adding value to our customers,” explained Alberto Ongari, Head of INDICATA Italy.

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