Why "guide book" used car valuations get it wrong
For decades, UK used car valuations have come from monthly guide books - CAP, Glass's and Parkers. They're produced by editorial teams who set the trade and retail prices based on auction data and dealer reporting. The guide is then printed and reissued the following month.
In a market that shifts week to week - fuel prices, interest rates, used-car supply cycles, new model launches - a monthly editorial guide is always one to four weeks behind reality. For an individual transaction, that's the difference between a fair offer and a costly mistake.
What a live used car valuation looks like
A DealerPricing valuation is built from the actual UK market - 680,000+ live listings and the sold prices of comparable vehicles in the last 90 days. Every valuation includes:
- Trade price (what a dealer should pay)
- Forecourt average (what comparable vehicles are listed for)
- Recently sold price (what comparable vehicles actually sold for)
- Suggested retail (where to position your asking price)
- Days-to-sell estimate and supply level
Coverage - every UK used car that's actually for sale
The platform covers any UK vehicle with sufficient comparable listings. That includes every mainstream make and model - Ford, Vauxhall, BMW, Mercedes, Audi, Volkswagen, Toyota, Hyundai, Kia, Nissan, Land Rover, Mini, Volvo - plus the rarer derivatives within each.