Top or bottom?
It’s becoming increasingly apparent at the auctions these days that there are only two positions when valuing cars: top book and bottom book. The middle book is simply a waste of time.
The reasoning behind this is twofold. In the first instance, the cost and hassle of reconditioning cars is becoming prohibitive. What was a straightforward slap and tickle is now a potential minefield with regard to trim and paintwork.
Then there’s the number of deals being done digitally. How often do you hear of cars being sold over the internet following a short video emailed to a prospective customer by the sales team? Can you imagine selling a car over the phone, only to deliver it to a customer who claims it’s not in a condition ‘as described’? It would bounce straight back, your current account would be debited for the full amount and you’d be facing a bill for lost road tax and delivery charges. Then there’d be the social media fallout…
For this reason, you either buy a minter or a minger and pay accordingly. Anything that’s really rough is just shunned until it ends up on a bombsite and priced in weekly payments roughly equal to the APR on kneecap finance.
‘You either buy a minter or a minger and pay accordingly’