Avoid Buying a Halloween Horror with an HPI Check
With witching season upon us, we want to protect buyers from cars that may go bump in the night. Horror stories aren’t just for halloween, 1 in 3 cars checked by HPI uncovers a gory history. This shows that some sellers have more tricks than treats for unsuspecting buyers.
How do Private Registration Plates work?
Personal Registrations According to the DVLA, around one in 10 cars on UK roads now wears a personal registration plate. When the registration A1 was issued in London at the end of 1903, Earl Russell queued all night outside the London County Council offices to secure it – so for well over a century there’s been a following for interesting car registrations. Nowadays it’s easier than ever to put a personal registration onto your car, whether you’ve got lots of money to spend, or just a little bit. If you just want to give your car a plate that catches your eye but isn’t likely to be of much to interest to anyone else, you can pick something up from just £50. But read on and you’ll see you can spend rather more than this if you want to really make your car stand out…
HPI gives consumers a helping hand with the launch of a used car buyer’s guide
Expert advice on the latest scams, plus paperwork and checklists to give used car buyers confidence www.hpicarbuyersguide.co.uk HPI provider of the HPI Check® is helping used car buyers get it right, when it comes to parting with their hard earned money, with the launch of its digital HPI Used Car Buyer’s Guide. In all the excitement of buying a car, it’s easy to overlook the essentials or even fall prey to common scams. HPI’s comprehensive guide aims to encourage consumers to do their homework to minimise the risks, as well as highlighting the latest fraud sellers are carrying out. It also acts as an important reminder to buyers to conduct a vehicle history check via www.hpicheck.com.
The Importance Of A Service History
We’re always told never to buy a car without a service history, but just how much difference does it really make? Should you automatically discount the purchase of a used car just because its service history is missing or incomplete? And what difference does it make if the car has been serviced by an independent specialist rather than a franchised dealer? Without a service history there’s always the possibility that a car has been clocked or that important components haven’t been replaced as part of the service schedule. Any history is therefore important, but as a car gets older and its value drops, the history makes less and less of a difference, unless it’s a prestige or luxury model.
Five Great Used Convertibles
Despite the rubbish weather that we have to put up with in the UK, we buy more open-topped cars than any country in the world, apart from North America. Perhaps we’re all blind optimists, or maybe we just need something fun to counter all of the traffic jams, potholes and speed cameras. Or perhaps it’s because we’ve never had such a brilliant crop of convertibles to choose from. If you’re in the market for a used convertible, no matter how small your budget, you’ve got your pick of great convertibles. You can choose from two- or four-seaters, soft tops or hard tops, petrol or diesel. And when you’re buying used, there’s even more choice, so it’s hard knowing where to start.
Where To Buy A Used Car
Every year around eight million used cars change hands. While choosing which car is the right one is bewildering enough, working out where to buy your second-hand car can also be mind-boggling. You can choose between franchised and independent dealers, car supermarkets, auctions, private sales – the latter through the classifieds and online auctions. Wherever you buy, make sure you read our blog on avoiding fraudsters as well as the one about 10 warning signs when buying a second-hand car. But not until you’ve read this blog, to pin down exactly where you should buy that used car.
The Dangers Of Buying Used Tyres
Running a car can be expensive, so it’s only natural that the idea of cutting costs can be hugely appealing. One of the easiest ways of doing this is to skimp on maintenance and to fit cheaper parts when doing so. Second-hand or pattern parts can be much cheaper than the new, branded alternative – so why wouldn’t you opt for them?
How To Buy A Car At Auction
For decades, buying at auction has been the cheapest way of snapping up a used car bargain, but many buyers are put off because they think they’ll end up paying too much, or buying a heap. After all, you’d only put a car into the auction ring if it’s too riddled with faults to sell it on a forecourt, wouldn’t you? Not necessarily, as car auctions are all about volume. Companies disposing of fleets have to shift a lot of cars very quickly; there simply isn’t the time to prepare and advertise them, then put them on a forecourt and wait for them to sell. Through the various auctions around the UK, thousands of cars are sold every week; it would take far too much time to sell them individually.
10 Warning Signs When Buying A Second-Hand Car
Buying a used car can be very stressful, but if you’re methodical about things there’s little to fear. The key is to make a series of basic checks, any one of which will highlight whether or not the car is likely to be a safe bet. So if you go to look at a second-hand car and you encounter any of these warning signs, make a sharp exit or you just know that you’re going to have nothing but trouble once you’ve handed over your money.
The Roof Comes Off But So Do The Miles
As British Summer Time Fast Approaches, HPI Urges Convertible Car Buyers to Check for a Chequered History Over the last decade the UK has seen the number of convertible cars on its roads increase by a staggering 1182%*, confirming Britain’s passion for ‘making hay whilst the sun shines’. However, HPI is warning convertible-loving used car buyers looking to bag themselves a bargain this summer, that this type of car is the most likely to be recorded by HPI as having a discrepant mileage reading – which could mean it’s been ‘clocked’ to reduce its true mileage.