When considering buying a used vehicle it is important to check the vehicles previous history as this can reveal vital information that could influence your decision to buy or not. Often times sellers will not be 100% transparent with buyers, therefore it is your duty to make sure you have done your own thorough checks. One of the best ways to get a plethora of information about a vehicle without a lot of trouble is by doing a full car check online. A vehicle history check will reveal to you all you need to know about a cars past history.
One of the most important things to check is outstanding finance on the vehicle. Outstanding finance refers to when money is still owed by the previous owner on the vehicle. You can check finance on car by carrying out a car history check. If the vehicle has outstanding finance, the new owner would be liable to pay for the outstanding amount. Finance agreements are law binding, so you as the new owner you would not be able to get out of paying it off. Not all sellers would disclose this information and this could trick you into buying a car with unpaid finance resulting in you being liable to pay of the finance on the car.
It is not recommended to ever buy a car with unpaid finance on it. In most cases the seller will not return the money to you and you will be left in a difficult situation, so always do a car history check. It is illegal to sell a car knowing that there is unpaid finance on it but court action against the seller will result in additional fees so try to avoid being put in this situation by doing your own checks. It is important to also ask the seller for a clearance letter proving that the car is clear of any finance if they claim that the car is free of finance.
Unfortunately, if you fall into a situation like this and do not pay the finance, the finance company can legally take if off you without compensation even if you are a ‘innocent buyer’. When looking at vehicles you are interested in, it’s a good idea to have a few different options and do full car history checks on them in case the initial one you want has outstanding finance you can have a look at something else.
If you find yourself in an unfortunate position where you have purchased a car with finance, speak to the finance company about the situation sometimes they are able to help by coming up with a payment plan rather than just taking the car away. If the check you have done shows finance on the vehicle it’s important that you contact the finance company to check if the payments have been settled or if payments are still due before making a decision.
Car finance is common way of purchase a vehicle in the UK, to find out more information on the different types of finance available you could check the comparison here. In conclusion it is important to carry out a finance check you can put your mind at ease when buying a car, this will give you the reassurance that the car has no hidden history that could later cause you bigger issues.
