Car loan customers reminded of scrappage scheme benefits
Consumers planning to take out a car loan have also been advised to take advantage of the scrappage scheme before it ends next month.
The government's car scrappage scheme has led to almost 290,000 new car registrations in the UK, it has been confirmed.With auto sales figures dwindling, the initiative was launched last year to provide consumers with discounts if they exchanged their old vehicles when purchasing newer, more fuel-efficient offerings.
A total of £300 million was originally set aside by the government and a further £100 million was made available in October, although this extra funding has not yet been required.
However, new data from the Society of Motor Manufacturers and Traders (SMMT) have confirmed that the scheme was responsible for 284,479 new car registrations between May and December 2009.
"The scrappage scheme has helped significantly to increase new car registrations in each of the last six months, including a 38.9 per cent increase in the December 2009 market," commented SMMT chief executive Paul Everitt.
"This has provided an important boost to the UK motor industry and greater confidence for consumers. The scheme will continue until the end of February and there is still an opportunity for around 85,000 more consumers to take advantage of it."
Mr Everitt added that the initiative accounted for 20 per cent of overall UK auto sales in December, a scenario which can perhaps be explained by the recent VAT increase being imminent.
News of the popularity of the scrappage scheme could be of interest to car loan customers, who may be able to secure a better deal than expected on their planned new vehicle purchase.
The SMMT also revealed recently that the total number of new cars sold in the UK last year hit 1,994,999, which represented a dip of just 6.4 per cent in comparison with the figure for 2008.
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