WBAC Ridiculous offer?

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Indeed, one doesn't have to settle for a bad deal.

Just knocking the VAT off the original sale price gets you to £32k, (which is perhaps were it would be priced as an Approved Used).Deduct some more based on half a year's depreciation, plus the 'used' status, two increments on the number plate, fall in diesel popularity, cooking 220d (for clarity I'm not saying a 250d would fair any better) and their need to turn a profit.....

So, on the face of it not the best offer, but can see how they got there.
Why would you need to knock the VAT off - the cost of the car is the cost paid - all cars have VAT on them and if it is used and “vat qualifying” the dealer has to charge VAT.

Residual values have nothing to do with VAT, selling the car is all about the market - at the moment, the car market is in recession so dealers and manufacturers are awash with cars so the market price is depressed. As the manufacturers have skewed the market by selling PCP’s based on high GMFV’s then those cars are flooding onto the market, as used values are depressed then that in turn depresses the new car prices.

When Merc couldn’t get me a E300e within 8 months and I told them my only alternative plug-in was a BMW the sales director offered me a new unregistered S560e L AMG Line for £ 64k against a list of £ £98k. I didn’t take it as it is far too big for my needs and the emissions didn’t give the tax break I am looking for. DriveTheDeal have the same model at £ 70k so my offer was about right. I see on the a Merc site there is a similar car at MB Liverpool but a March 19 plate with 49 miles on it for almost £ 90k - someone is in for a shock if they pay anything like the asking !
 
Why would you need to knock the VAT off - the cost of the car is the cost paid - all cars have VAT on them and if it is used and “vat qualifying” the dealer has to charge VAT.

The most common way for dealers to account for VAT on used cars is the "margin scheme".
In this way VAT is only charged on the profit that the dealer will make and not on the full price of the car.
 
When I was changing my C207 over 3 years ago , WBAC's offer was only about £700 less than MB had offered for it in p/ex. Carwow's price of £10,000 off the new C207 made the deal a no-brainer.
 
The most common way for dealers to account for VAT on used cars is the "margin scheme".
In this way VAT is only charged on the profit that the dealer will make and not on the full price of the car.
As it’s used, the original price had the VAT in it
 
You paid too much in the first place.

I regularly get emails from lease companies offering the likes of your car for circa £30k brand new after discount.
Times have changed ; I remember my dad taking delivery of his W115 back in 1970 , and immediately putting a deposit on another ( 18 month waiting list ) , when the next car cam the first one was still going well , so he paid the list price for the new car , stuck an ad in the paper and sold it to a dealer for a profit . The only stipulation was it had to be ‘delivery miles , which on asking was under 100’ but the guy sent a transporter to collect it .

It was quite a common practice at the time .
 
In my experience, WBAC valuations are pretty similar to what you'd get as a part exchange valuation so they're not entirely ridiculous. Of course if you overpaid in the first place, the more ridiculous it does seem.
I'm a member of a MB Facebook group and people slate WBAC for giving low-ball offers and they should go to Mercedes and p/x it for a new Merc as they'll get a much higher valuation, not realising it comes out of their margin, along with the discount on the new car.
 
As has been said already, there’s two lots of margins to account for with the WBAC offer - their own and that of whoever buys it at auction to sell for profit.

They only buy stuff for a price that they can be guaranteed to make a good chunk of money on. And also have to account for the risk (think how many ‘bad’ cars with serious faults could be sold to them by private owners looking for a way out!)

If you have a nice example of a desirable car, cut out the middle man (WBAC) and sell direct to someone/somewhere that specialises in those sorts of cars. They will probably prefer buying from a private owner than something that’s been dragged through the auction anyway and you won’t be paying for WBAC’s chunk of the deal either :)
 
Cant believe WBAC are now offering me £18500 for my Brilliant Blue 2015 S205 C220d Premium Plus Estate (Tinted Glass and Airmatic).....a year ago it was £15995...Its done 26282 miles FBMSH and is in mint condition....too good to sell even at that price as can't find anything else that excites me....had it from new
 
The, quite ordinary, new Volvo that I bought in May is now showing on WBAC at £300 more than I paid for it.
 
Second hand car market hardened significantly.... my 2013 W204 is now worth £8k, apparently....
 
Put mine into Motorway and WBAC yesterday and it was circa £4000.00 more than it was about 6 months ago , s/hand prices are going crazy.
I also got a p/ex value on Volvo's website - £5000.00 les than the above.
 
Put mine into Motorway and WBAC yesterday and it was circa £4000.00 more than it was about 6 months ago , s/hand prices are going crazy.
I also got a p/ex value on Volvo's website - £5000.00 les than the above

It's got a bit silly.

Delivery times for new cars have stretched out and there is uncertainty due to the push towards EVs.

I tried my car in WBAC about 6 weeks ago and the price was about £5K more than I expected. Dealer prices have gone up proportionately as well.

I was called out of the blue by the dealer that sold me my car 6 years ago looking to see if I still had it and willing to trade it.

I had planned to change this year but the situation is silly - and complicated. Yes the value of my car has gone up - but the cost of a replacement has gone up - particularly if it's petrol. Hybrids are expensive and compromised (not good if your journey patterns don't fit well with battery usage - though potentially excellent if they do). EVs becoming more visible (every journey I take now I will see at least one or two Tesla Model 3 or the odd other EV). Diesels are a bit more available but while it's a diesel that would suit my needs best - the eco-politics swirling around private car ownership mean you can't trust government, regional authorities, or local authorities not to pull the carpet from under you.

So if enough other people think like me then that means the used market may be further squeezed by owners hanging back from trading their vehicles because of lack of trust in the way ahead.
 
Used values have hardened, owners are tech cautious, and there’s an enormous flood of cash trying to find a use, both amongst dealers and owners.

Take a sceptical look at how long cars have been on dealer forecourts. (Check mileages on history and Autotrader insertion dates). There are a lot of cars out there that have been sat unused for a year.

and then there’s the arrival of the likes of Cazoo, as well as the use of old airfields just to store near new cars once returned by their first owners. Strange times.
 
as well as the use of old airfields just to store near new cars once returned by their first owners. Strange times.

Also if prices are going up and your used stock is increasing its value on the balance sheet - perversely there's not quite the same imperative to shift it as quickly as there might otherwise be.
 
Also if prices are going up and your used stock is increasing its value on the balance sheet - perversely there's not quite the same imperative to shift it as quickly as there might otherwise be.
Exactly my point. Money is cheap, so dealers and manufacturers are holding onto stock, rather than releasing it by doing a deal.

I’ve been watching two (very high spec) vehicles (that I’m not quite sure are what I want / “are worth the money”) that have been sat in dealerships for over nine months now. In previous times the Dealer Principal would have moved them on.
 
My C300 2.5 years ago was valued by MB dealer at £28k as a trade in
WBAC this week valued it at £27.4k

Heard about a 17 plate C63 AMG bought 2 years ago for £37,500 - Sold last week for £38,500
Now on Mercedes main dealer forecourt for £44,950
 

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