Londoners ignore tax and pollution to buy 4x4 vehicles

Congestion charges and the recent tax increases on the most polluting vehicles have not deterred Londoners from investing in 4x4 vehicles.

Sales of this vehicle type, often large family vehicles, were strongest in Greater London (up 9.4 per cent compared to the same period in 2006), according to the latest used car sales statistics for April, May and June this year from Experian, the global information services company.

Used SUV, MPV, luxury and super mini cars were the only types of vehicles that saw sales rise throughout the country during quarter two this year – and nowhere more so than in Greater London. This region also saw the biggest increase in the sale of used MPVs (up 12.4 per cent) and the second highest increase in the sale of used luxury vehicles (up 5.6 per cent).

Kirk Fletcher, Managing Director of Experian’s Automotive division, said: “It is becoming increasingly expensive to own a larger engine car, especially in London, but it has failed to deter Londoners from buying this vehicle type. It was also interesting to see that super minis became the most popular selling type of used vehicle in terms of volume, increasing in sales in most regions. However, sales of this type of car actually fell by 2.1 per cent in Greater London – the second highest fall among UK regions for this vehicle type during quarter two.

“Although higher tax and congestion charges have not encouraged 4x4 enthusiasts to move over to smaller cars in the city, Greater London was, however, the region to see the biggest increase in the sale of diesel run used cars (up 13.3 per cent) while petrol run used cars fell by 3.8 per cent.”

However, with increased popularity comes increased opportunity for fraud.

Ian Clark, Operations Director for AA Vehicle Inspections, said: “Each year around 3.5 million used vehicles are bought and sold privately but we estimate that only a third of these are actually checked out through services such as the AA Car Data Check and even fewer through the AA Vehicle Inspections.

“So far this year, over 90 per cent of all the ‘seemingly OK’ cars that have been checked by AA Vehicle Inspections have needed essential or advisable repair work and we have advised our customers that they should either reconsider the purchase or make sure repairs are carried out before buying. Furthermore, despite the increasing sales of used SUVs, our statistics show that less than eight per cent of all the vehicles inspected this year have been 4x4s.

“In addition to this, one in three cars on the road still has a ‘hidden’ history, which cannot be highlighted through a physical inspection. This includes outstanding finance, being a stolen or registered as a write-off. The only way to really check the true identity of the car is by carrying out an AA Car Data Check.”