What has happened to Cazoo?
What went wrong for online car retailer Cazoo? Online used car retailer Cazoo has fallen into administration, after cutting hundreds of jobs as part of a big restructuring. Cazoo became popular during the Covid pandemic when restrictions forced car buyers to browse and make their purchases online. Cazoo, founded in 2018 to sell used cars online, has appointed administrators to put it into voluntary liquidation and sell the business. It recently made 728 employees redundant and sold all its stock after deciding earlier this year to change to advertising dealers’ used cars instead of retailing its own vehicles.Leading motoring brand Cazoo has relaunched today [2 April] as a dedicated used car search marketplace, squarely aimed at challenging the dominance of the current market leader, providing more options and choice for UK car-buyers and car dealers.Cazoo was acquired by Motors. June 2024, and rather than remaining a direct-to-consumer retailer, the brand was relaunched as an online used car marketplace connecting used car dealers with buyers across the UK! An app went live in July 2024 and in 2025 we became the lead sponsors of Brentford Football Club!The Administrators will be contacting customers with service plans and warranty claims (excluding extended warranty) to outline their options. As Cazoo stopped selling used cars in April 2024, Cazoo does not hold any customer deposits and all customer vehicle deliveries have been completed.
Why did Cazoo collapse?
Cazoo listed on the New York Stock Exchange at an initial valuation of $8bn, but that value rapidly eroded away. However, Cazoo’s biggest mistake, believes Kelly, was the fact it invested in its own used car stock. I think that was the fundamental issue with Cazoo,’ he explained during the podcast. Alexander Chesterman founded Cazoo in 2018, marking the beginning of his journey with the company. He initially took on the role of CEO, leading the company through its early stages and significant growth. Chesterman served as CEO until January 2023, when he transitioned to the role of Executive Chairman.Chesterman is one of the few people to make money from Cazoo: he reportedly cashed out £100m in shares in 2020 — a sum now worth more than the entire company — and was reported to have a net worth of £750m by the Sunday Times in 2021.
Who replaced Cazoo?
In 2024, we entered an exciting new chapter: On June 28th, MOTORS proudly acquired the Cazoo brand — one of the UK’s most recognisable names — to launch an all-new, dealer-friendly used car marketplace across app and web. In March, Cazoo said it would dispose of all its stock and adopt an “online marketplace” model serving the car dealers it was established to challenge.
Will Cazoo recover?
Last year, I wrote an article talking about the collapse of Cazoo. Now, though, it is making a comeback after being taken over by MOTORS. Earlier this week, on 2nd April 2025, Cazoo relaunched as a dedicated used car search platform. A year later, in March 2024, the company stopped buying and selling cars and closed its remaining showrooms, aiming to become purely an online market place; the move meant 728 redundancies. On 21 May 2024, Cazoo went into administration putting 208 remaining jobs at risk of redundancy.
Are Cazoo still trading?
If you purchased your car directly from Cazoo via the website before 27 March 2024, then please be aware that Cazoo Ltd ceased trading on 27th June 2024. Consequently, any statutory rights are no longer applicable. We recommend that you make contact with a local garage to understand your best options. So, if you bought a car on finance from Cazoo, its cessation as a sales operation doesn’t affect you directly. It merely connected you with the company that lent you the money. If you’re not sure who your lender is, its name will be at the top of your finance agreement. You’ll also find it on your bank statement.