New car sales fell in February by 35.5% year-on-year, according to new data from Cox Automotive, reinforcing the importance of showrooms reopening on 12 April 2021.
Representing a monthly decline of 28,282 vehicles, orders for the new 21 numberplates were down by 30% year-on-year, according to over half of dealers surveyed.
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Across all national lockdowns, both new and used car sales have fallen below expectations.
Philip Nothard, insight and strategy director at Cox Automotive, said: “The data on car sales during the third lockdown makes for difficult reading, but it also provides some optimism. Some 70% of dealers report the third lockdown has caused a 10-30% reduction in new car orders, and 17% of dealers have been hit as badly as up to 50%.
The first lockdown from March to June 2020 accounted for 77% of the total deficit in new car registrations, and a decline of 1.1m units within the used segment.
New car sales in March 2020 decreased by 44%, April saw a decrease of 97.14% and May saw a decrease of 88.98%. For used car sales, the year-on-year fall in March 2020 was a decrease of 30.72%, 74.22% in April and 57.11% in May.
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By GlobalDataDuring restrictions across November and December car sales declined more gently, with new car registrations falling by 27.4% and 11% across the two respective months. Used cars fell by 18.33% and 4.23% respectively.
Northard continued: “This highlights why it’s imperative for the industry, that car showrooms reopen on 12 April. Thankfully, over half of the dealers believe that economic conditions will improve once the third lockdown ends.”
In response to restrictions, dealers have been accelerating their digital transformations through the introduction of virtual showrooms and Click and Collect tools.
Despite being branded a permanent and positive shift in the industry due to their convenience, Northard believes that the “less popular Click and Collect schemes” will be “supplemented hugely by the more standard showroom and test-drive experience that customers are used to”.
Northard concluded: “The opening of car showrooms on 12 April is a real opportunity for dealers to boost sales volumes after a hugely challenging 12 months. April and May could see a surge in new car sales, coinciding with the recent release of the new ‘21’ number plate.
“Furthermore, consumer spending in 2021 could well shift to the car market, since other large-scale purchases such as holidays abroad, continue to be surrounded by risk and uncertainty.”
