Vehicle Remarketing in 2026: Rising Volume, Tighter Logistics
The remarketing picture has flipped from where it sat a few years ago. The pandemic-era squeeze — thin used supply, suppressed repossessions, propped-up borrowers — has given way to the opposite condition: more vehicles flowing back into the channel, and a logistics network under real pressure to move them.
An aging fleet feeds the channel
The average U.S. vehicle is now 12.8 years old, a record, according to S&P Global Mobility — 14.5 years for passenger cars and 11.9 for light trucks. There are 289 million vehicles in operation, and high new- and used-vehicle prices are keeping owners in older cars longer. As those vehicles finally turn over, more units move through auctions, dealer trade-ins, and wholesale.
Repossessions have surged
The clearest reversal is in repossessions. After collapsing to historic lows in 2020–2022 on stimulus and forbearance, recoveries have climbed sharply: roughly 1.7 million vehicles repossessed in 2024 — the most since 2009 — and more than 2.2 million through late 2025, with year-end projections topping 3 million. Cox Automotive data put the increase in the repossession rate at about 43% between 2022 and 2024. With the average new-vehicle price above $50,000 and monthly payments near $749, affordability strain is concentrated in subprime, where delinquency sits at multi-decade highs. For the remarketing sector, that means rising repo and off-lease volume entering auctions and repo yards — and tighter logistics conditions to handle it.
What this demands from the logistics layer
Higher volume across more vehicle conditions raises the bar on the transport underneath it:
- Repo handling — clear processes and the right equipment for potentially inoperable vehicles in constrained yard space.
- Residential and fleet pickups — precise scheduling, real-time updates, and a clean customer-facing experience.
- Dealer wholesale speed — flexibility and fast, responsive turnaround on short notice.
- Operable and inoperable, single and bulk — one network that handles the full mix without handoffs to unvetted third parties.
What to look for in a logistics partner
Auctions and remarketers evaluating partners should weigh: a deep, vetted transporter network; capability across operable and inoperable units; residential-pickup expertise; consistency against tight deadlines; transparent pricing; detailed, timely condition reports; and real visibility, not status calls.
Where Carpool fits
Carpool was built for exactly this market. We move 182,000+ vehicles a year, 357,000+ all-time, across 13,000+ vetted carriers and all 48 contiguous states, with a 99.8% claim-free record across 2025 and a median under 19 hours from order to dispatch. Every move carries a documented chain of custody — geo-tagged photos, verified carrier identity, live tracking — so rising volume doesn't mean rising risk.
Vehicle logistics with a chain of custody.
