Used LCV values fell by £211 in February to £4,272 according to BCA’s latest figures, a 4.7% drop from the 20-month high recorded in January.

BCA’s Pulse data shows average LCV values fell in all three sectors of fleet/lease, dealer part-exchange and nearly-new thanks to a combination of softer demand and changing model mix as supply pressures continued.

The February average figure of £4,272 was the lowest recorded in the past six months and performance against Guide Prices fell by one and three-quarter points to 98.23%.

However, year-on-year, February 2012 was £126 ahead of the same month in 2011, equivalent to a 3% improvement – despite the average age and mileage rising by four months and over 6,000 miles respectively in the same period.

Duncan Ward, BCA’s General Manager – Commercial Vehicles said:

“However, values remain at a much higher level than they were a year ago, despite both mileage and age rising by around 8% in that time.  This is in line with our expectations – shared by Professor Peter Cooke at the Centre for Automotive Management, Buckingham University – that the market will continue to experience a relative shortage of units under five-years old in the short- to medium-term.   As a result of the lower new van sales since 2008 and the trend for larger businesses to hold on to vans for longer, it may become increasingly difficult to source good quality used LCV stock and this means values are likely to remain reasonably firm as a result.”

As I discussed in Wednesday’s post about new van registrations, it seems that the market for vans is taking longer to recover than for trucks.