Most Brits knowingly accept a bad deal for their car to avoid awkward negotiations. A better solution is needed.
The UK’s used car market is about four times bigger every year than the sales of new cars. That means that most of us will end up selling our cars, or buying used cars, at least once a decade.
However, 65% of us will routinely accept what we know to be low deals for our cars, simply because the process can be slow, difficult, and costly. Motorway, the UK’s fastest-growing used car marketplace, promises a car-selling process that’s quick, easy, and always free for the seller.
What makes Motorway different?
Selling your car on a national, online marketplace offers several key advantages compared to selling on a classifieds site or in your immediate local area.
For one thing, you can do the whole thing from home – from your initial valuation through to getting your car collected. On Motorway specifically, it’s easy to profile your car on your phone.
You may find you get a better price after the verified dealers from all over the UK have competed, rather than having to go with a local quote, or driving around looking for a fair offer. And, you’ll enjoy free home collection of your car once you agree a deal, regardless of where in the country your buyer is based.
Compared to traditional methods of car selling, the convenience of not having to host multiple test drives looking for a buyer, or enter into lengthy negotiations, is a huge time-saver.
How does Motorway work?
Motorway provides anyone who owns a car or a van (including those with outstanding finance) a marketplace where over 5,000 verified car dealers UK-wide (including in Northern Ireland) bid their best price to secure your vehicle.
You start with an instant, free valuation on Motorway’s site. If you’re happy with the initial valuation, which is based on your car’s basic spec and mileage, you can continue to profile your car on their app.
Their app, on the App Store and Google Play Store, uses AI to fill in a lot of your car’s key info, and help you take professional-grade photos – no need to write a lengthy description. All you have to do is confirm your car’s history and upload some pictures and documents to get your car in the online daily sale.
When you accept your best offer at the end of the sale, all that’s left to do is arrange a date for free home collection. Your buyer will clear any remaining finance with your lender directly if applicable, and you’ll get your sale proceeds paid directly into your bank account.
What’s your car’s value on Motorway?
Instant valuations on Motorway are accurate, reliable, and based on real-time data – including the thousands of bids and sales placed by dealers on the platform every day.
An even better way to get the best value from your car, from day one of owning it onwards, is to track its ongoing value. More than half of drivers in the UK think their car’s value is always depreciating, but that’s not the case. Cars lose value in very uneven patterns – and can even rise in value for sustained periods of time, depending on market conditions.
By using Motorway’s free tool Car Value Tracker, you’ll get insights into what your car is worth in the used market, and gain more control over your finances by choosing a favourable time to sell for a good price.
What affects car value?
It’s hard to know whether your 8 year-old, low-mileage car will hold up better than your newer SUV that clocks double the miles. You can compare the historic valuations over the past two years for up to six vehicles, giving you insight into the financial assets you have right on your driveway.
Additionally, Car Value Tracker on Motorway gives you personalised insights into each of your vehicles – helping you understand how various factors affect their pricing. Using data from their online daily sale, including the thousands of bids placed by dealers each day, they indicate the popularity of your model, prices of similar cars sold recently, and more.
The main factors that will drive your car losing value are:
Age, condition, and mileage
Your car’s age, physical condition, and mileage are all proxies for each other and indicate the vehicle’s wear and tear level.
If your car is older, but in near-perfect condition and low-mileage, it will of course hold a stronger value compared to similar models. The same goes for a car in great condition, with slightly higher mileage.
Your car can be expected to lose value quickly in its first three to five years after initial registration. So, particularly if you’re its first owner, it’s worth waiting until the value plateaus a little so you get plenty of value out of your car before selling. The only way to pinpoint this best time to sell is by tracking the value.
Fuel type and emissions
The UK is regulating highly-polluting vehicles more and more, and it pays to have a cleaner-running car.
From Clean Air Zones such as London’s ULEZ and Scotland’s Low Emission Zones, to the changes to road tax bans in 2025, and the variable levies and costs of fuel, it looks like older cars and diesel cars can be expected to increase in running costs over the next decade, making them less attractive to buyers.
Accident history
It’s easy to run background checks on cars, and if you have any accident or category writeoff history, it will sink your value. You may find that you have a better outcome selling your car parts individually and scrapping the shell, if your value is highly diminished.
Market demand
The used car market is constantly responding to buyer demand. Events such as the new car shortages during the early 2020s can inflate used car prices, while conditions such as the cost of living crisis can reduce them. Like any other consumer industry, pricing reflects the business that dealers can do with the public who are buying and selling their cars.
To get ahead of these unpredictable factors affecting your valuation, start following changes to your car’s price now.
