I despair of the 2nd hand car rackets

gilbert_and_sullivan

The buying and selling situation parallels the country and what it's become.

Go out and find a man who's word means something, a man of honour, decency, truth and integrity, an almost impossible search.

Tip...don't look in Westminster.

Rolandtheroadie

The cars I normally buy I call cashline cars. You could pay for them with your limit from the hole in the wall (more or less).

Used to do car auctions, now ebay (you seen the buyers costs at auctions lately?)

I would recommend ebay.

Build your picture before you buy. My last one came from someone that buys and sells, but had nearly 200 positive feedbacks with a good few cars in that. All cheap cars too.

Other vehicles have been bought sight unseen from ebay based on feedback, time they've owned the car, quality of the description (faults listed, no basic spelling errors) and then a quick internet search for common faults and ask a few questions to avoid any confusion.

If you then win, go to pick up. Ensure it's as described, that everythings in order pay the seller then go away happy.

ukjoel

Would agree with Scotsman - Ebay is a better place for a non trade buyer to look than the auctions. Used to track a lot of ebay auctions and was surprised by how many private sellers (selling on auction not classifieds) ended up selling the cars to obvious trade sellers for low prices.

jase1

gilbert_and_sullivan wrote: »

The buying and selling situation parallels the country and what it's become.

Go out and find a man who's word means something, a man of honour, decency, truth and integrity, an almost impossible search.

Tip...don't look in Westminster.

Hey we're not a completely dead breed you know. My word is my bond -- and if that means getting £100 less for a car on ebay, so be it.

thenudeone

libertysurf wrote: »

I’ll start with one I heard, from what I think is a sound source.

A truck was for sale. The normal checks showed nothing wrong with it. Not stolen. Cash given. A few weeks later the tax needed renewing. That’s when the problem arose. Turns out the truck was in a yard with loads of others, and the owners were leasers and did not notice the theft of the truck until weeks later. So the searches were fine.

We're all interested in how to avoid being scammed so:
What about the registration document?
Did the payment go to the name on the document?
Was the vehicle inspected at the address listed on the document?

(I already know that a V5 is not proof of ownership.)

WHITEVANMAN

libertysurf wrote: »

How do we buy an honest 2nd hand car?

One trader put the phone down on me when I asked for the landline number. One said the car was in one place but he would drive it 30 miles to where it was in fact stated to be on autotrader, then on the day of viewing asked me to go to a different place. And got shirty when I said I would no longer be coming out.
Another sale fell through when the seller said the car had ABS when it did not then accused the buyer of wasting their time (!)
And what is it with the phrase 'no time wasters'? Does this mean you are not expected to look at the car but take their word for things? How can that be squared with 'sold as seen' and 'buyer beware'.

Why do garages sell cars on eBay that they say they have not checked over as they came in part exchange and they are clearance cars they just want to get rid of. Where is the pride in the garages in their work? They seem to say they are selling rubbish and you are on your own if it goes wrong.

One garage said yes to my coming out to see the car [ad on autotrader], but then said no when he realised I was local, as he 'did not want his reputation to go down and he knew I would not like the car'. We had only discussed the car still being available, and him giving directions, when he realised I lived nearby!

Others pose as personal sellers but they are selling on behalf of their uncle, their sister in law, their daughter…

I despair of the trade!

A lot of second hand car sales are extra cash sellers, running as an aside to the day job or benefits, its so easy, anyone can do it.
Get along to an auction and buy cars from £50 upwards with some Mot on it, get it home spruce it up and bodge all the repairs necessary and whack £500+ on top of the costs on the price, park it up somewhere visibile and stick a few cheap ads in.
Simple.

As a private seller, you can get away with selling such rubbish, as a legitimate trader you cannot.

This is why the people dealing in these cars are trying to disguise their activities in whichever way possible, Pay as you go Mobile numbers are an essential tool of these unscrupulous people, they are trying to do everything they can to distance themselves from the buyer and avoid the recourse that could be claimed against them if the were to be exposed as a trader.

Im guessing Ebaying off trade-ins is a way to get around the responisiblity of sale, much the same way as these cars are disposed of in regular car auctions.
The cars are usually not worthy of the work needed to repair to good standards comparable to the price given at trade in, in general you should be getting an ebay car much under the retail price of an equivilant but therefore you should also expect at least several minor problems but major problems would also be common.
In effect you are buying the rubbish the dealer doesnt want, and he is disposing of them.
Buying cars at any auction online or real is a risky play if you dont have the ability to put right any potential problems either yourself or through associates.

Either Use reputable dealers with good facilities, or use personal sellers who are accomodating to your request for land line, address and having your mechanic giving it a good look over.
Check docs to make sure they match address, and check the length of ownership, anything in the months should ring alarm bells.

Bangers are bangers are bangers and will always require repairs, off lot cars, if not personally owned for a reasonable length of time should always be treated with some suspicion, If you must buy, look for the best examples you can and do your research, there will always be another one to look at if you walk away.

Just becasue an ad says trader or (t) that doesnt mean they are anything more than one man operating out of his lounge, its quite possible that the publication/website he is using has noticed he has placed many ads over a period and is helping to highlight you to trading activities, so if the seller appears to be indicating he is acting in a private sale or acting like a private seller with these indications, hang up the phone.