Outlook and context
Cautious outlook: Motor finance providers entered 2026 more guarded, with the share expecting growth in the next year falling to 57% in Q4 2025 from 72% in Q3. Lower inflation and interest rates are supportive, but regulatory uncertainty and weak consumer confidence are weighing on sentiment.
Consumer market highlights (November 2025)
- New cars: Advances £1.45bn (+1% YoY); 51,476 vehicles (+5%). Three months to November: £5.86bn (+9%), 206,940 vehicles (+10%). Twelve months: £19.02bn (+8%), 667,392 vehicles (+7%). Year to November (11 months): volumes +7% vs 2024.
- Used cars: Advances £1.57bn (-1% YoY); 101,111 vehicles (-3%). Three months: £5.32bn (+3%), 340,443 vehicles (-1%). Twelve months: £21.74bn (+3%), 1,402,409 vehicles (-2%). Year to November: volumes -2% YoY.
- Combined consumer totals: November flat YoY at £3.02bn and 152,587 vehicles. Three months: £11.18bn (+6%), 547,383 vehicles (+3%). Twelve months: £40.76bn (+5%), 2,069,801 vehicles (+1%).
Business market
- New cars: November 29,614 vehicles (-1% YoY). Three months: 98,627 (+4%). Twelve months: 364,427 (+2%).
- Used cars: November 4,954 vehicles (+24% YoY). Three months: 14,374 (+17%). Twelve months: 51,428 (-10%).
Key themes
- Divergence persists: Consumer new-car finance continued to grow in both value and volume, while used-car volumes softened despite modest value gains over longer periods.
- In November, used cars still exceeded new cars by value (£1.57bn vs £1.45bn) and nearly doubled the number of vehicles financed, but both measures declined year over year.
- Improving macro conditions may aid 2026, yet regulatory uncertainty and fragile consumer sentiment are curbing growth expectations among lenders.
