Second-hand cars only slightly more expensive; 9.4 million cars on Dutch roads last year

Buying a second-hand car has become more expensive in the past year, but the significant price increases are behind us. A used vehicle cost 0.8 percent more in December than the year before, where the price increase in 2022 was more than 17 percent. AutoScout24 reports this. In 2021, the price of a second-hand car increased by more than 18 percent.

According to the European online car platform for new and second-hand cars, a Dutch second-hand car cost 24,252 euros in December, compared to 24,055 euros a year earlier. There are also more used cars on the market than a year earlier. The supply grew by more than 16 percent to 220,138 second-hand vehicles.

AutoScout24, therefore, notices that the used car market is stabilizing. This is not only happening in the Netherlands; a similar development is also occurring in other European countries. Prices even fell in Belgium and Germany.

There was a significant increase in the amount of cars driving on Dutch roads in 2023. Over 180.000 passenger cars were added, putting the total number of passenger cars on Dutch roads at 9.4 million. A spokesperson for the car branch organization BOVAG confirmed this to AD.

The increase was called “remarkable” by BOVAG, but they do not know what led to it. In the last few years, around 100.000 cars were added per year on average. There were an estimated 8.2 million cars on the road in 2015.

Nearly 370.000 cars were sold last year, much more than the previous year. This is mainly due to a catch-up of postponed deliveries in 2022, BOVAG and RAI Association said earlier. Also, 254,000 cars were imported, compared to almost 280,000 exported vehicles. In addition, according to the AD, 164,000 cars were scrapped.