AutoScout24 published the Europa Report once again this year. This is considered the "industry barometer" for the European used car market and is now in its 13th edition. The core content of the report is the development of the price and availability of used cars in European countries. One of the most interesting recent developments is that the price increase slowed considerably across Europe in 2023 at 'just' 9 percent.
The report shows a significant slowdown in the price increase compared with 2022 in particular, when the figure was still 21 percent. AutoScout24 is already talking about a normalisation on the used car market. This is certainly a very positive development for all end users. Nevertheless, used car prices overall reached a record level in 2023!
A look at the figures in detail
The Europa Report 2024 is based on data from Belgium, Germany, France, Italy, Luxembourg, Netherlands and Austria. If we look at the price trends in detail, we can see that prices in France have risen most strongly at 10 percent. The figure is 9 percent in the Netherlands and 7 percent in Luxembourg. We have lower price increases in Austria at 5 percent, in Germany and Italy at 4 percent, and in Belgium at just 3 percent.
This is also reflected in the average used car prices. Used cars in Luxembourg and France are the most expensive, with an average price of 37,448 euros and 30,995 euros respectively. The cheapest used cars can be found in Italy with an average price of just 22,693 euros.
The range of used cars available has also increased by 12 percent throughout Europe. One particularly notable development is the 143 percent increase in the range of electric vehicles available across Europe, whereas purchase enquiries for these cars have fallen by 2 percent.
Which models/brands are the most popular used cars?
The most popular car in the "used" segment in all the above-mentioned countries is the VW Golf, with the exception of France, where the Renault Clio is the most popular, with the VW Golf coming in second. Looking at the five most popular models in Europe, Volkswagen occupies the top two places with the Golf and the Polo, with the models A3, A4 and A6 in third, fourth and fifth place. The German manufacturers aren't doing as well in the electric vehicles segment. The Tesla Model 3 and Model Y are the most popular here, with the Tesla Model S coming top in the Netherlands.
The report also takes a look at the leasing market, with the following results: The top lease brand is Volkswagen at 18.6 percent (percentage of all leasing enquiries), the VW Golf is the most popular model for leasing enquiries at 5.9 percent.
Outlook 2024
Based on these figures, we can cautiously assume that prices on the used car market are slowly returning to normal. However, seasonal fluctuations are still to be expected.
