2nd hand car

dawnt80

I've found a car I really like but am slightly concerned as I've never not bought from a garage. It comes with a years warranty but is there anything else I need to be checking out?

thanks in advance

Aylesbury_Duck

dawnt80 said:

I've found a car I really like but am slightly concerned as I've never not bought from a garage. It comes with a years warranty but is there anything else I need to be checking out?

thanks in advance

Lots. If you're not reasonably mechanically savvy, have you got a friend or family member who could come with you to check it out?

Alderbank

...and not just mechanical stuff but legal things as well, such as is there outstanding finance on the vehicle, has it been in an accident, does the V5 match the car, and more.

'as I've never not bought from a garage' sounds strange. Do you mean you have only ever bought from a garage before but this car is different such as from a friend or family member, a private sale, etc.?

born_again

dawnt80 said:

I've found a car I really like but am slightly concerned as I've never not bought from a garage. It comes with a years warranty but is there anything else I need to be checking out?

thanks in advance

What sort of car/value are you looking at? 1 year warranty who by & are you paying for the warranty?

dawnt80

Alderbank said:

...and not just mechanical stuff but legal things as well, such as is there outstanding finance on the vehicle, has it been in an accident, does the V5 match the car, and more.

'as I've never not bought from a garage' sounds strange. Do you mean you have only ever bought from a garage before but this car is different such as from a friend or family member, a private sale, etc.?

Yes I mean I've only ever bought from a garage and this will not be

dawnt80

Thanks for your help

melb

is it from a private individual?  It would be unusual for a member of the public to provide a warranty but I might be wrong

dawnt80

Not exactly, it's a company who buy vehicles which have been repossessed due to financial hardship. The company buy from auction.
in an ideal world id take a mechanic but it's not an ideal world.

thanks the advice helps me cover as many bases as I can, buying I guess always has risk involved

Ectophile

If the warranty is from one of the aftermarket warranty companies then either:-

• Read it very carefully to spot all the things that are not included, or
  

• If it's too much legalese to bother, then assume it's totally worthless.

The second option won't be far off anyway.

TimSynths

Always check the cars MOT history, quick, free and easy to do-

What is the vehicle's registration number - MOT History (check-mot.service.gov.uk)

Alderbank

Dawn, there are a lot of big red flags here and a great deal of risk even for very experienced and knowledgeable buyers (who usually avoid such 'bargains').

My advice is don't do it. You are out of your depth