Over half of car buyers would prefer to purchase their next car directly from the manufacturer.
According to What Car?, buyers would prefer an ‘agency’ model with fixed prices rather than buying from a traditional dealer.
As part of its latest industry research, 55.4% of 1,221 in-market buyers surveyed by What Car? said they would rather purchase their next car directly from a manufacturer with a guaranteed price, rather than negotiate with a dealer.
The same percentage were in favour of manufacturers moving to an agency model in the future, which would see standardised prices introduced across new cars.
What Car?’s research found just 24.6% of respondents stated they actively enjoy haggling, while the rest either dislike it, accept it as part of the buying process, or never do it.
However, the research highlights little change in consumer attitudes to the agency model over the past 15 months, with What Car? having published similar research in January 2022, when it found that 57.5% of buyers were in favour of purchasing their next vehicle directly through the manufacturer over a dealer.
Steve Huntingford, editor, What Car?, said: “Our latest research highlights that a slightly higher percentage of customers still prefer the agency model over traditional dealers, with fixed prices seen as a more convenient way to purchase a vehicle.
“However, the fact that despite more than 12 months of progress, a near identical share of buyers still prefer the agency model, suggests that the traditional forecourt will remain a part of the UK automotive landscape for some time.”
