Car sales rise by 31.6% on scrappage scheme.

The biggest monthly increase was in October, when sales jumped by 31.6 per cent. Some 168,942 new cars were registered last month, up from 128,352 the year before, as sales of vehicles to private buyers increased by 86 per cent to 89,532, according to The Society of Motor Manufacturers (SMMT). Unfortunately sales of fleet cars decreased by 2 per cent to 74,445 because company cars are rarely old enough to qualify for the Government scrappage scheme, where owners of vehicles that are more than ten years old receive a £2,000 discount on a new model by trading in their old one.