Car Vertical

microgerry · August 28

Hi. Anyone had any dealings with Car Vertical or similar companies? They profess to check all relevant info on a car to hopefully prevent the buyer from purchasing a stolen or insurance write off.

In the past I have always purchased vehicles (cars and vans) from dealers and usually taken in a part ex, safe in the knowledge of at least some warranty and that the dealers would or should have carried out all the relevant due diligance.

Right now I am in the process of buying an SC430 from a private seller and thought before parting with thousands of pounds I would spend a little on a car vertical report, for some piece of mind. I paid my money and the report initially looked interesting. I could only find mention of one change of registration and shortly after, one change or ownership. Great I thought, a two owner car!

Went to view it yesterday and took a test drive, examined the paperwork to discover it has in effect 5 previous owners! It hasn't really put me off the purchase but I did begin to wonder about the accuracy of the report I had just paid good money for.

Do you think I should ask for a refund? 😉

Malc1 · August 28

I've never done a check like this but I have noticed that Autotrader seem to offer a very comprehensive all-embracing status check for £4.95

Malc

microgerry · August 28

1 minute ago, Malc1 said:

I've never done a check like this but I have noticed that Autotrader seem to offer a very comprehensive all-embracing status check for £4.95

Malc

Damn, that's a lot cheaper than the £28 I paid.

Herbie · August 28

I've always used HPI.

Boomer54 · August 28

3 checks for £14.95 ish. Prices - Total Car Check

Tells you a variety of info re past ownership ,plate changes, keeper history, accident etc etc reporting.

Actually, i have one voucher unused and I have no anticipation that I am going to use it. Hence, if any regular here finds a need let me know and I can use it on a report for any car you might be interested in.

ColinBarber · August 28

I've used Total Car Check a couple of times for an 'HPI' check. £8.99 for a single use of their Gold service, much cheaper than some - although probably the same info as you would get for £4.95 from Autotrader - and both have a £30k guarantee.

Bob King · August 28

20 minutes ago, Boomer54 said:

3 checks for £14.95 ish. Prices - Total Car Check

Tells you a variety of info re past ownership ,plate changes, keeper history, accident etc etc reporting.

Actually, i have one voucher unused and I have no anticipation that I am going to use it. Hence, if any regular here finds a need let me know and I can use it on a report for any car you might be interested in.

Agree Total Car Check are very good 👍🏻

Bob King · August 28

42 minutes ago, microgerry said:

Hi. Anyone had any dealings with Car Vertical or similar companies? They profess to check all relevant info on a car to hopefully prevent the buyer from purchasing a stolen or insurance write off.

In the past I have always purchased vehicles (cars and vans) from dealers and usually taken in a part ex, safe in the knowledge of at least some warranty and that the dealers would or should have carried out all the relevant due diligance.

Right now I am in the process of buying an SC430 from a private seller and thought before parting with thousands of pounds I would spend a little on a car vertical report, for some piece of mind. I paid my money and the report initially looked interesting. I could only find mention of one change of registration and shortly after, one change or ownership. Great I thought, a two owner car!

Went to view it yesterday and took a test drive, examined the paperwork to discover it has in effect 5 previous owners! It hasn't really put me off the purchase but I did begin to wonder about the accuracy of the report I had just paid good money for.

Do you think I should ask for a refund? 😉

5 owners for a car that age is to be expected. The SC430 was bought by owners as a novelty convertible and kept for a year or two then onto the next new convertible on the market .

Only in recents years are owners appreciating them and keeping them for longer 👍🏻👍🏻

Bob King · August 28

…or better to have 5 caring owners than 1 careless one 😮

microgerry · August 28

4 hours ago, Bob King said:

…or better to have 5 caring owners than 1 careless one 😮

True, but my point was about the expensive report that missed this vital info. I am not too concerned about the number of owners

steve2006 · August 28

I would certainly be asking CV questions and for an explanation, goods and, in this case, services should be covered under the Consumer Rights Act and therefore must be as described and fit for purpose, Failure to disclose additional owners I feel doesn’t meet those requirements.

Bob King · August 28

I found the car on Auto Trader , did you look at the mot history for the car ? Under body corrosion mentioned many times .

Boomer54 · August 29

8 hours ago, Bob King said:

I found the car on Auto Trader , did you look at the mot history for the car ? Under body corrosion mentioned many times .

Corrosion, indeed and it looks like an advisory style underseal after it's been brought back for an MOT a few years later. If that's what it sounds like, 'blacking', I would want that removed so I could see what corrosion was like under there before I did anythingelse.

Boomer54 · August 29

On facebook.

Marketplace – 2001 Lexus SC 430 | Facebook

Some good things. Some not so good especially for the bodywork. Price is reflective of at least some of this.

Harrier Man · August 29

Do the AA still offer a service where they check a potential new car for mechanical defects? A potential buyer for my Discovery had this done years ago and it included a check for being stolen or being an insurance write-off. The check was extremely thorough and the mechanic found that the crankshaft pulley was loose and would have resulted in catastrophic failure if not rectified. I hasten to add that the car drove perfectly and I had no idea of the fault, which had been caused when Land Rover did an engine change for an unrelated problem when the car was just a few months old. The check (which cost around £50 IIRC) potentially saved the buyer £1,000s.

For those needing closure, the story had a happy ending. Land Rover accepted that they were responsible for the loose crankshaft pulley when the engine was changed and fixed the car for free. The prospective purchaser was happy with Land Rover's response and assurance that the car now had an engine 'as good as new' and went on to complete the sale. We exchanged £16,000 in cash in the car park at Stanstead airport which, in retrospect, probably looked like a dodgy deal had anyone noticed!

microgerry · August 29

9 hours ago, Bob King said:

I found the car on Auto Trader , did you look at the mot history for the car ? Under body corrosion mentioned many times .

I did, but like Malc has said, for it's age one would expect it. My MR2 is slightly older than this SC and although in good nick, has some corrosion underneath.

Boomer54 · August 29

1 hour ago, microgerry said:

I did, but like Malc has said, for it's age one would expect it. My MR2 is slightly older than this SC and although in good nick, has some corrosion underneath.

Were you able to see clearly underneath?

The last MOT advisory stated undersealed and this typically just means "we can't inspect it, because we can't see it".

I understand your comments. My concern was not is there some superficial rust. You would expect some of that. No, my concern was is there more than that, but how do you know if you cannot see it through the sealant?

Just interested in how transparent this issue was, because in essence what the rest of car is like doesn't count for much if it is structurally compromised.

ColinBarber · August 29

1 hour ago, Boomer54 said:

I understand your comments. My concern was not is there some superficial rust. You would expect some of that. No, my concern was is there more than that, but how do you know if you cannot see it through the sealant?

Magnet is really all you can use to make sure it isn't full of filler. Underseal is a legitimate protection method but can equally be used to cover up issues.

microgerry · August 29

22 hours ago, steve2006 said:

I would certainly be asking CV questions and for an explanation, goods and, in this case, services should be covered under the Consumer Rights Act and therefore must be as described and fit for purpose, Failure to disclose additional owners I feel doesn’t meet those requirements.

Well, what a surprising result

I did have a moan to CV but they just told me that they don't own the data they use, just collect and collate it from various sources.

Then I received an email from them asking me to review my experience. I did, and posted it to Trustpilot and within thirty minutes another email from CV! Someone from Customer Services tried to offer me two more credits to my account. As I had no intention of buying another car I declined their offer.

Next I was offered a refund of £28.78 for my disatisfaction.

Wow, I accepted and got a full refund.

Boomer54 · August 30

10 hours ago, microgerry said:

Well, what a surprising result

I did have a moan to CV but they just told me that they don't own the data they use, just collect and collate it from various sources.

Then I received an email from them asking me to review my experience. I did, and posted it to Trustpilot and within thirty minutes another email from CV! Someone from Customer Services tried to offer me two more credits to my account. As I had no intention of buying another car I declined their offer.

Next I was offered a refund of £28.78 for my disatisfaction.

Wow, I accepted and got a full refund.

Good result !