Manheim to extend online truck auctions

Online auctions of commercial vehicles may reasonably be expected not to do so well during an economic downturn. But Manheim is finding that the sector has picked up as buyers decide not to take the time out of the office to go to an auction and instead follow the proceedings online.

Group commercial vehicle manager James Davies reveals demand has been such that Manheim is extending its online truck auctions from Leeds to include its Gloucester site.

"We've also had calls from customers asking when they will be able to view the truck auction at our other sites." As an example of how truck auctions are taking off online, Davis points out that Manheim broke its record for an online sale when a Mercedes-Benz tractor unit was bought by an online buyer for £26,300.

"That is staggering when you consider this was an online buyer who had never seen the truck, however we are finding that buyers are asking local dealers or others they have partnerships with to inspect vehicles they are considering buying."

Davies adds Manheim expects to sell 100-150 trucks via online auctions this year. "When you compare this to the 2,500 vans we hope to sell at online auctions this year, it doesn't seem very much – but we've been selling the vans online for much longer and last year we only sold 815."

In an attempt to continue the growth, Manheim is now urging customers to provide reports and pictures with the vehicles they are selling at auction. "We are also looking to provide inspections on behalf of buyers and looking at whether we can extend the online auctions to include markets such as plant equipment," Davies says.