Accurate inspection, data capture and crystal-clear images give trade buyers confidence to buy online
There is an oft-told story about images on social channels, about the way objects look online versus real life, as the difference is stark.
When trade buyers procure used vehicles through auctions, accuracy, 3rd party validation and grading benchmarks are critical when finding comfort to a professional procurer. The upside about physical vehicle auctions is you get to see the thing you want to buy in real life, but it is amazing how easy it is to hide problems with accident history and issues with the inner workings of a motor. Physically viewing a vehicle isn’t the same as knowing it’s history. And with physical auctions, there is a fear that the Auctioneer oversells a used van because they have created an upbeat, exciting atmosphere in a traditional auction room, and the crowd whoosh along on the momentum of the occasion.
In the cold light of the day, the reality is that with the vehicle you may have just purchased, seeing is not believing. What is truly required when a trade buyer is purchasing used vans, for example, is accurate imagery, real-time information, independent inspections and validation benchmarks. Lastly, they need the time and the space to make logical not emotional decisions. This is where a good online auction betters a physical auction.
When it comes to used light commercial vehicles, such as vans, trustworthy online auctions would provide third party benchmarks. Not all auctions do. To validate the quality of a vehicle, we always suggest that the auctioneer uses an external validation company. For example, Hudson Kapel, the online auction that offers used commercial vehicle uses the largest independent vehicle inspection company in the UK, VQS – Vehicle Quality Solutions – to ensure the vehicles they offer through auction compare precisely to the actual unit. Hudson Kapel also use the a grading system to measure the quality of each unit. We recommend you only buy a van online if it has independent inspection and grading validation.
Trade buyers also need to get a good look at the vehicle they wish to consider. This needs very high resolution, crystal clear imagery from every required angle. The technology for very high resolution cameras is very expensive, and only the best online auctions invest in the best. They know that accurately presenting the vehicle that the trade buyer feel that the online auctioneer is a trusted partner.
A good example of very high resolution imagery is the BrightPix Camera system and studio, created by Hudson Kapel, the online commercial used van auctioneer. So specialised and high-tech is BrightPix that a whole structure had to be built around it. A bit like famous magnetic resonating imagery machines in hospitals. BrightPix delivers crystal clear imagery, so that trade buyers have a very accurate idea of the state of the used van in reality – it really does match the real, physical unit.
The final caveat to a physical auction purchase is documents and data. The obvious requirements, such as the V5, an MOT and the CAP values. Beyond that, a physical auction relays on documents and data often being written down, then copied, then printed, then passed on, which is only up to date on the first copying. The buyer never knows if the documents they see are the very latest and have limited ways to verify them.
Online documents, on the other hand, are likely kept up to date, and other online databanks can usually compare them for verification. Online documents are also readily available, on any device, anywhere in the world, which is unlike physical auctions reliant on the famous catalogue, preserved in time, unlike the very fluid online alternative.
New Technology, connected through the Internet has brought the word of online auctions to maturity. Trade buyers can now buy more used vehicles, with more efficiency, at a quicker speed. But, as with everything, professional trade buyers need to be able to trust the online auctioneer. Independent validation and grading benchmarks are an absolute priority along with very high resolution imagery. All this, and you have a highly capable online auctioneer to call your trusted partner.