Skimping on van servicing could cost you money

New research from BCA, Europe’s largest used vehicle marketplace, underlines the importance of a service history when it comes to selling used vans.

BCA researched price performance for a ‘basket’ of 5,000 LCVs that went through its sales earlier this year, comparing the price achieved against industry guide values for vehicles sold with a full service history to those without. Up to ten per cent price improvements were recorded for vehicles with a full service history, with this factor increasing in importance on older vehicles.

For lower mileage vehicles, (sub-50,000 miles) BCA saw a 3.5 per cent uplift in performance. This rose to nearly 4 per cent for vehicles that had covered 50,000 to 100,000 and rose again significantly to a 10.4 per cent uplift on vehicles that had covered over 100,000 miles.

Duncan Ward, BCA’s head of commercial sales explains, “A van is a working tool so it makes good sense to maintain it properly, but if further evidence was needed, a service history will also add to its value when it is sold.”

He added “With many small businesses and sole traders typically running used vans there may be a temptation to extend or even ignore the recommended servicing schedules. However, regular servicing on even the oldest vehicles will make them more saleable when it is time to change.”

Ward continued “Our research shows that if a service history is missing, the seller could be potentially sacrificing up to 10 per cent off the value. On older vehicles that may have been resold several times, even a partial history is better than none at all and can help to improve the price achieved.”

He continued: “A service history shows the vehicle has been well maintained by the previous owner and confirms that a warranted mileage is correct as declared. And it is the latter that can have a real, tangible effect on the potential price a vehicle might achieve.”