£500 more for the old van than the part-exchange offer

Customer situation

A warehouse concrete flooring business replacing its existing van with a tipper better suited to the work it was winning.

Asset required

A tipper, with the outgoing van to be disposed of.

The challenge

Like most van replacements, the conversation started with a part-exchange figure — and part-exchange figures are almost always the lowest number in the transaction. The dealer is buying a vehicle they intend to sell on, so the offer reflects their margin rather than what the van is worth.

Options considered

• Accept the part-exchange — simplest, but the lowest return on the outgoing vehicle.
• Sell privately — more money in theory, but adverts, time-wasters and payment risk.
• CW Asset Finance route — we sell the outgoing van on the client’s behalf and fund the replacement.

The CW solution

Instead of rolling the outgoing van into the deal at trade price, we sold it separately on the client’s behalf and got £500 more for it than the part-exchange offer. We then arranged the finance on the new tipper, with that £500 going straight into reducing the amount that needed funding.

Key outcome

£500 the client would not otherwise have seen, a slightly smaller balance to finance on the tipper, and one person handling both ends of the changeover. It is not a fortune — but it is £500 that would have quietly stayed with the dealer, and it took one phone call to find out.

“Arranging finance is one job. Making sure the vehicle you are replacing does not get undersold is a different one, and most brokers do not do it. It is usually worth real money.”

— Conor, CW Asset Finance

Every application is assessed on its own merits and all finance is subject to status and lender approval. This is one client’s outcome and is not a guide to what any other business will be offered.