New car sales soar by 30% in 2015

New car sales grew by 30% last year as industry figureheads said the motor sector was helping to drive employment.

The Society of the Irish Motor Industry (SIMI) published its annual industry review, conducted alongside retail website DoneDeal, which reveals that sales of new vehicles were up across the board in 2015.

In further positive news, the second half of last year saw even greater sales growth than in the first six months of 2015, while January v January comparisons also indicate more vehicles were sold last month than in the corresponding month in 2015. However, while motorists have been benefiting from cheaper fuel costs, car insurance costs have grown by 30% over the past year.

SIMI were quick to stress that car sales have not returned to boom levels but it has projected another 22% increase in car sales in 2016.

The Motor Industry Review 2015 showed that 124,945 cars were sold last year — up 30% compared to figures for 2014.

The sales of light goods vehicles increased by 42% year-on-year, while there was a more modest increase of 9% in heavy goods vehicles.

There were 82,337 151-reg car sales for the first half of last year — up 25% — and 42,608 sales of 152-reg vehicles in the second half of the year — up 39%.

SIMI expects that 152,500 cars will be sold this year, accompanied by a 3% rise in jobs in the sector. SIMI currently estimates that 43,400 people are involved in the motor industry.

The growth in vehicle sales is also reflected in online sales activity, with DoneDeal reporting that 603,000 motor adverts were published last year with the value of cars advertised and sold estimated at €2.46bn.

There was a 16% increase in the number of visits to the websites’ cars section, to 233m, with Volkswagen the top-selling car brand on the site, followed by Ford, Toyota, BMW and Opel. It also showed that black was the most popular colour and hatchback the most popular body type.

The most expensive car advertised on the site last year was a Rossa Red Ferrari 458 Italia with an asking price of €279,950.

In addition to the well-documented fall in the cost of petrol and diesel, the cost of a new car is now 2.9% lower than it was in the final quarter of 2014. However, motor insurance costs have risen by a staggering 30.7% in the same period.

Government revenue on car sales last year was €1.19bn, with total revenue generated by motorists for the Exchequer estimated at €5.4bn.

The report also claims that consumer confidence levels are now at their highest point since 2006.

SIMI president Mark Boggan said the motor industry was a “key contributor” to employment and the general economy.

“An increase in both consumer and business confidence last year has contributed to the growth in sales and we have seen this carry over into the first trading months of 2016,” he said.

Cathal Creman, commercial manager of the motoring section of DoneDeal, said last year had been record-breaking for car sales on the site and that “the trend this year is all about upgrading to higher spec models”.

SIMI.ie/quarterlyreview

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