Strong demand for ex-fleet and leasing stock drove the used car market to a record level in 2006 with nearly £34 billion spent on used cars.

Vehicles aged between three and five years old, for which fleet and lease stock is a primary source, saw sales grow to 2.26 million units, accounting for 30.3% of the market. Overall UK used car sales volumes increased by 2.5% to 7.44 million units.

That figure is an increase over the 7.26 million units sold in 2005.

According to BCA in its annual used car market report, dealers continued to dominate used car sales, increasing their volume of the market by 1.5% to 54.8%.

Private sales fell by 60,000 units to 2.89 million – accounting for 38.8% of the market.

Tony Gannon, communications director at BCA, said: “Used cars contribute massively to the UK economy, with motorists spending more than £30 billion annually on purchase alone.

“Fleet and lease companies are the primary providers of the good quality, reasonably-priced used car range that meets motorists’ needs.”

The key role played by ex-fleet and lease stock in the used car market looks set to continue this year, with BCA reporting strong prices for these vehicles at auction during the summer.

Average values of ex-fleet cars sold during July and August reached nearly £7,000 – well ahead of last year’s figure at the same time.