Accounting and advisory firm KPMG has attributed a 9.3% year-to-date rise in UK new car registrations to the best car financing deals "since 1979".
Commenting on Society of Motor Manufacturers and Traders (SMMT) figures showing 11% growth in May, John Leech, UK head of automotive at KPMG, said: "The new car market in the UK continues to be buoyed by substantial discounts offered by car manufacturers directly to consumers, such as 0% finance. Analysts at CAP Automotive recently claimed that motorists are enjoying the best new car deals since 1979."
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Last week’s SMMT figures, which showed a 20.9% increase in private demand, coincided with the Finance & Leasing Association (FLA) reporting a record 73.2% new car finance penetration rate.
On Europe and PPI
Repeating observations from remarketing group Manheim, CAP, and Duncan Aldred, chairman of Vauxhall, Leech also expected manufacturers to turn to the UK market "to keep their factories busy" while Eurozone countries were performing poorly.
He added that PPI compensation was helping, providing UK consumers with one-off lump sums, at the same time as advances in fuel efficiency and a high average on-road car age drove consumer demand.
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By GlobalDataLeech concluded: "These factors look likely to remain in place over the coming months, which is good news for car manufacturers, dealers and the consumer."
