The scrapping of cars older than ten years started at the end ofMarch, but the results of the scheme have yet to be seen in termsof sales.
Car sales on the Romanian market fell nearly six percent in thefirst quarter of this year, to nearly 17,900 units, according tostatistics of players in the car industry. The first-quarterdecline comes amid an over 30% decline in car sales in March, to7,200 units. The over 30% difference between March this year andMarch last year mainly has to do with the car scrappage schemebeing postponed. This year it started on March 18th, while lastyear it started at the end of February.
"This year the scrappage scheme took longer to start. The hindrancenow is the "grey" market of vouchers. Those who scrap cars andtrade vouchers are hanging on to them in order to get as high aprice as possible," says Alin Tapalagă, head of Porsche Inter Auto,the retail division of Porsche Romania, the biggest player on themarket. Tapalagă said those who have scrapped cars or hold vouchersincreased their prices from 1,200 lei last year to as much as over1,700 lei.
The statements of the head of Porsche Inter Auto are confirmed bythe statistics of the Administration of the Environmental Fund(AFM). Almost three weeks from the start of this year's scheme,more than 16,100 old cars have been scrapped, but no applicationhas been approved by the AFM, so no car has been delivered as partof the scheme yet.
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