New consumer car finance volumes rose 33% in November

Newly published motor finance market data from the Finance and Leasing Association (FLA) has revealed that business volumes rose by a third in November.

The 33% rise, to 169,989 new and used vehicles, meant that new business volumes were up 9% year-to-date at the end of the month.

The value of advances across new and used car finance in the consumer market rose by 47% to £3.12 billion in the penultimate month of 2021, meanwhile.

FLA director of research and chief economist, Geraldine Kilkelly, was quick to point out that the November increases were a reflection of November 2020 trading that was heavily impacted by COVID-19 lockdowns however.

She said: “The strong growth reported by the consumer car finance market in November reflects low new business volumes reported a year earlier as the UK entered another lockdown to deal with rising cases of COVID-19.”

Pointing out the barriers to recover y that still exist in the car retail sector, Kilkelly added: “The market’s recovery continues to be disrupted by supply side shortages and the increasing squeeze on household disposable incomes from higher inflation and interest rates.

“New business volumes in the consumer car finance market are likely to be just over 2.1 million cars in 2021 as a whole, 12% lower than at the onset of the pandemic in February 2020.”

The FLA reported that consumer new car finance market experienced new business up 37% by value and 32% by volume in November, when compared with the same month in 2020.

That far outstrips the 115,706-unit new car market, reported by the Society of Motor Manufacturers and Traders (SMMT), which brought and end to four months of consecutive decline in new car sales with a 1.7% year-on-year uplift.

In the eleven months to November 2021, new business volumes in this market were 6% higher than in the same period in 2020, the FLA said.

The consumer used car finance market reported new business up 55% by value and 33% by volume in November compared with the same month in 2020, it said.

In the eleven months to November 2021, new business volumes in this market were 11% higher than in the same period in 2020.