Women Car Buyers’ Breakdown Nightmare
I was talking to my friend last night and she was telling me what a nightmare she had recently had when taking her car to the garage. She said she felt that she had been treated really badly by the staff. The reason that her problems arose in the first place was because she had been sold a duff car which had been pushed through it’s MOT. She may have been one of many people who get sold used cars which actually have more problems than the seller lets on. Many cars which have previously been written off are cleverly repaired with filler and paint and then re-sold. There are also a number of “Cut and shut” vehicles - one car produced by welding together the front and back of two different vehicles, as well as stolen cars or ones with outstanding finance.
However, whilst many dealers will try and sell dodgy cars to unsuspecting customers, many of whom will be women, there are some sellers who you can trust entirely. One such seller is www.carsite.co.uk which is not a dealer but a route through which ex-fleet cars are sold directly to the public at wholsesales prices. All Carsite cars are independently RAC inspected and HPI history checked and there is a 100% as described guarantee. If you are not totally satisified, then you pay nothing.
Perhaps if my friend has used Carsite then she would not have run into the problems which she did, and would never have felt intimidated at the garage. But, this in itself is a problem which needs to be addressed. According to a survey by Direct Line one in five female drivers refuse to travel on Britain’s motorways because of a fear of breaking down. Perhaps they just cannot face the hassle of the garage which would follow.
As they say, prevention is better than cure!
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August 14th, 2007 at 8:55 am
Used car buyers, “don’t get caught†check its history before you!
In the UK 1 in 3 vehicles has some form of hidden history, false identification, outstanding finance (2 out of 3 vehicles are purchased on finance), previous damaged, total loss (450,000 a year), stolen (nearly 400,000 last year), not to mention mileage discrepancy’s or clocking, cloning, ringing etc. Performing a history check when consider purchasing a used vehicle is the best safeguard. You can obtain a history check on any UK DVLA registered vehicle whether it is a commercial or private vehicle i.e. HGV, bus, van, moped, scooter, motorbike, car etc.
A history check is probably most commonly referred to as HPI check or car check, HPI is the registered trade mark of the oldest operating car check company which originally stood for Hire Purchase Investigations, HPI is now part of Norwich Union/Aviva group but there are now other companies offering similar services but the term HPI check is used much as the word hoover for vacuum cleaner, Hoover being the name or the original manufacturing company. As well as HPI check you will also find these history checks referred to as; car check, car data check, aadatacheck, car history check, car report, car history report, car-check, vehicle check, vehicle history check, vehicle history report, write off check, car finance check, police check, DVLA check, autocheck, status check etc. etc. but basically they all refer to the same thing.
Car data checks have been available to the trade since the end of the 1930’s but have only been available to the private buyer for around the last 25 years. There is not a reputable dealer in the UK who would purchase a used vehicle without first obtaining a vehicle history check. However because of a lack of awareness only a small percentage of private buyers in the UK perform a vehicle history check before they purchase a used car. Where as in the USA, it is now virtually unheard of to buy a used vehicle without first performing a history check.
To perform the elements of a history check the providers need access to various databases these included DVLA, insurance history, finance, national police computer, national mileage register database’s etc. some require a license all are expensive to maintain and access. This is why there is a cost for your car check any one offering checks for free or cheap will not have access to the necessary up to date information required to perform a thorough vehicle history check. The providers featured on http://www.datachecks.co.uk , all have access to the relevant databases including the DVLA. On the datachecks site you can compare the content and cost of all the major history check providers and get a check instantly online.
Car theft and fraud is an on going major problem so it makes sense to take as many precautions as possible before committing to buy a used vehicle and parting with your money because you could loose it. A data check before purchase will reveal any hidden history so is the best safeguard.
Hopefully, if you have found this article of interest, you will visit my site where you will find more in depth information on buying a used vehicle, including explanations for the various insurance loss categories.
G Barfield http://www.datachecks.co.uk