The Big Story
The success of online-only auctions during lockdown
’It’s clear there are plenty of buyers and sellers out there’
Aspecialist in online-only auctions has said that there’s still plenty of pent-up demand for cars, which is being reflected in sale rates at classic sales across the UK.
The Market’s sales totalled £868,388 in May – its most recent monthly sale total – with an 88 percent sales rate. Of 56 cars offered, 49 sold, the top price being £45,751 achieved by a modified 2007 Land Rover Defender TD5, closely followed by a Cropredy Bridgerestored 1975 Jensen Interceptor that was sold for £40,900. It follows similar results from other auctioneers across the UK, with Anglia Car Auctions selling 83 per cent of the cars appearing at its latest online sale (full review, page 32), with some surprise results, including the £38,880 paid for a Swallow Doretti – more than £17k above its upper estimate.
Other notable results for onlineonly auctions held during the lockdown include Silverstone Auctions’ fi rst virtual auction, which recorded an 89 per cent sale rate, and RM Sotheby’s online Palm Beach sale in the US where the world record for a car sold online at a classic auction ( C, 1C0WJune) was smashed.
The Market’s director, Tristan Judge, said: ‘May’s total sales were almost the same as April’s, although more cars were sold in May and we were busier: results from other online auctions have shown there is pent-up demand.’
‘Since the lockdown eased we can see lots of dealers are selling cars, as long as they are sensibly priced, and it’s clear there are plenty of buyers and sellers out there. Some people might be buying a car because they’ll not be having a holiday this year.’
Tristan added that in The Market’s case, the number of enquiries about cars was on the increase, as was traffi c on its website. Other notable results from its May sales include a pair of modern classic Hondas that
performed well: a 1991 NSX achieved £39,010 and a 2007 Honda S2000, £20,750, those prices being at retail levels. The cheapest car of the month was a no-reserve modifi ed 1971 Volkswagen Beetle, at £3250.
The Market’s now pressing ahead with plans for its July sales, with limited, socially-distanced viewings now allowed in line with the latest government guidelines, with the latest lots including an unrestored 1973 Jensen Interceptor, a fully restored Lotus Elan Sprint and a 1964 Studebaker Avanti.
❚ themarket.co.uk