Car history checks

SimW85

I had a test drive for a car that's being sold by a private seller on AutoTrader. The car seemed great and it's a good price for the age & mileage. However... given the price, and also some nagging feeling in the back of my mind that thought the guy seemed a bit dodgy, I'm a little suspicious. And of course, if something seems to good to be true, it probably is.

I've seen lots of sites recommending that you get a full history check before buying a second hand car. The 2 that seem to regularly be suggested are the AA's and RAC's car history checkers.

My question is: how thorough and reliable are these history checkers? Basically, even if I thought the guy seemed like he might be a tad dodgy, if the history check were to come back totally clean, am I good to go ahead with the purchase?

forgotmyname

If the check comes back clean then it doesn't mean the seller is not dodgy or that the car has not been repaired.

Cheap checks are a waste of money in my opinion, A proper HPI, RAC, AA check is worth the money.

A car can be crashed and repaired properly or poorly and not show in the HPI report.

I only buy if the car has a perfect service history thats not run right upto the max service limit. If the max limit is 12,000 miles then its just that a maximum not a target. The extended service limits keep business buyers happy with low service costs.

Then you want a car thats been owned by the seller for a few years, if its a trade seller then you want the previous owner to have kept it for a few years.

Several owners in a short space of time = walk away.

chrisw

Trust your instincts. Even if it's legit it will take a long time for that nagging feeling to go away.

EdGasket

I once bought a car I thought sounded dodgy but it turned out to be the best car I've ever had. Still got it 8 years later. You can see if it has been written off for free on Autotrader.

What price are you talking about? Is the seller's name and address in the V5 ? Are you viewing it at the seller's and V5 address? If not be extremely cautious.

shaun_from_Africa

One small check that may help to find if there is anything dodgy is to do a Google search on the sellers phone number and e-mail address.


This might show if they are selling or have sold more cars recently and are a trade dealer falsely advertising as a private seller.