U.K.-based used-car marketplace Motorway has announced a change in the hours of its daily auction sales to make the process more convenient for dealers.
Previously, dealers received access to preview stock from 7pm the night before the sale, before vehicles went live at 8am the following morning.
The preview stage let dealers to choose and save the vehicles they wanted to bid on when the sale went live the following day. The hours have now been changed following feedback from dealers.
From last Wednesday, 18th October, Motorway has been allowing dealers to begin placing bids from 7pm the night before, with the auction hammer coming down at 3:30pm the next day.
Motorway said the change will give dealers more time to bid and make it easier for them to secure stock at a time convenient to them. Dealers can also utilise Motorway’s proxy bidding feature alongside the new earlier live sale time.
Proxy bidding allows dealers to set a maximum bid for a vehicle during the sale. It automatically bids on their behalf in increments of £50 so they don’t overpay when buying a vehicle via proxy bidding.
“We know that some of our dealers like to get ahead and review cars the night before the sale starts,” said Oliver Grummell, commercial director, Motorway. “Those dealers have been asking us to enable them to bid the night before as well.
“Coupled with our proxy bidding feature, our smart tech can do the heavy lifting for them, without ever over-bidding.”
Earlier this month Motorway published its financial results which showed the company’s operating losses more than tripled from £12.5 million to £43.6 million ($52.6 million U.S.), though Motorway said this was expected and “in line with investment plans”.
Revenue more than doubled from £19.8 million to £41.2 million. Gross profit was £35.9 million.
