Citizens Advice receives 84,000 used car complaints

With over seven million secondhand cars purchased in 2012, you’d expect one or two to develop a problem soon after purchase. But the Citizens Advice Bureau in fact received over 84,000 complaints about used cars during this period.

Half of these faults developed within a month of purchase. With drivers spending over £363 million fixing the problems, Citizens Advice received more complaints about used cars than anything else.

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In 139 cases, the car was deemed unfit for the road and only good for scrap. A pretty grim statistic, given than the average amount spent on a used car is just over £5,000. As scrap, the car is worth a few hundred pounds at best.

The findings support a new campaign aimed at steering people away from buying a dodgy used car.

The campaign – which is backed by the National Trading Standards Institute – urges people to ‘check it, don’t regret it’, encouraging motorists to ensure the car is safe and legal to drive, before handing over their hard-earned cash.

Many of the checks are basic and some are even free, such as checking the MOT certificate, service history and V5 document. Other checks involve a small fee, such as obtaining a report to ensure the car isn’t subject to outstanding finance or previously involved in a serious accident.

Three-quarters of all complaints involved cars bought from an independent dealer, cases in which the consumer has a number of rights.

Citizens Advice can tell you more, but in short, a car must match its description, be of satisfactory quality, be fit for purpose and be roadworthy.

If in doubt, walk away. There are plenty of used cars to choose from.

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By motoringresearch.com