Who would have thought that buying a car you’ve never seen from a seller you’ve never met would ever take off? Well it certainly has thanks to the internet, and now more and more of us are purchasing our new cars online. But, how do you pick a winner and not a banger? The following tips from Desperateseller.co.uk the UK’s premier car selling and buying website will show you what you should do when you shopping for a car online.

Preparation Is Key.
Before you start shopping, you first need to make two vital decisions: how much do you want to spend and what kind of car are you looking for? This is where the internet can really help. Several sites, including Desperateseller.co.uk have buyer’s guides that can help you compare one model to another within your budget. You can also read comprehensive reviews and ratings from leading car magazines and consumers who drive your potential future car every day.

As helpful as the internet is, there is one thing it can’t offer, and that’s first hand experience of how a particular model handles. So as soon as you know which car you are interested in, go down to your local dealer and take it for a test drive.

Know Your Price.
Once you’ve selected the car you want, read all the reviews and taken your future car out for a test drive, it’s time to research prices. If it’s a used car you are thinking about buying, first check the Glass’s guide for the car’s current value, by visiting www.glass.co.uk.

To determine the price you are willing to pay for your future car, you need to find out the minimum price being offered to private sellers on online sites, the maximum price from retail dealers and the going rate from an average of the prices asked in the classifieds.

What you also need to include in your budget for your new car is the cost of insurance. Sites such as Money Supermarket (www.moneysupermarket.co.uk) can search all leading insurers by filling in one form to provide you with a quote for insurance.

Start Searching.
Looking for your new car online as opposed to the local newspaper, gives you the opportunity to search and compare prices for thousands of cars in your area and scanning multiple pictures can also help you to get an idea of the car’s overall condition.

Desperateseller.co.uk is a great place to start your search. You can search using a range of different options, such as new or used car, private seller or dealer, price, engine size, automatic or manual and so on. All searches require your postcode, so that every listing returned includes the distance in miles from your location to the seller.

We recommend limiting your search to vehicles within 20 or 30 miles of your home. This way you can easily test-drive them and get them inspected by a mechanic you trust.

The Test Drive.
Once you’ve selected a potential vehicle to buy, a test-drive is a must! Try and arrange the test drive at the seller’s home, this should give you a better feel for the car by visiting the seller’s home and talking to their family. Also, never be swayed by shining looks: a quick valet and a new set of number plates will make any old banger catch the eye.

Insist on viewing the full service history from new to the most recent service and check that all the paperwork is in order. And, if it is more than a couple of years old pay for a full independent mechanical inspection.

Buying The Car.
Before money changes hands, make sure you’re up to speed on the legal aspects of buying and selling by reading the AA’s advice for private car sales, by visiting www.theaa.com

You also need to get an independent check from a company such as HPI www.hpicheck.com which checks the records to make sure the car hasn’t been written off, stolen or has outstanding finance.

By arming yourself with used car knowledge and know-how, beginning with these tips above, you’ll greatly minimise your risk of buying a vehicle that will be more of a costly headache than a joy ride.

Russell Berry is the co-founder of Desperate Seller.co.uk, the UK’s premier car buying & selling website. Established in 1999, the site was the UK’s first to offer a multi-website car advertising model, designed to reduce the time, stress and money involved in buying and selling new and used cars.