Steer clear of rip-offs when buying a car

Be wary when buying cars off the side of the road.

Kiwis hunting for a bargain often opt for the no-fuss purchase of a car from the side of the road. But roadside shopping can leave you seriously out of pocket if you don't know
who you're dealing with. Cassandra Mason investigates the difference between genuine
and bogus car traders and offers tips on how to avoid being stung.

As the warmer months see more roadside car sellers crop up, the Motor Trade Association (MTA) is warning buyers to be wary of unregistered traders selling dodgy cars.

Although many of the cars are being sold by genuine private owners, buyers need to be wary of illegal high-volume, unregistered traders, it says.

Recent years have seen a surge in the number of roadside selling venues and though a small number of local authorities have banned them, most have been left to trade in peace.

The law requires anyone selling more than six vehicles a year to become a registered motor vehicle trader. But some of those selling from the roadside get around this by claiming the cars belong to relatives. MTA marketing and communications general manager Ian Stronach says calls regularly come in from people who have been ripped off by people they thought were genuine private sellers.

"We don't see a lot of cars that are stolen or have money owing, it tends to be a quality issue."

It's usually a case of people importing cars and flicking them on with known problems, or peddling "fix up" jobs. "Guys are buying cars cheaply on the second-hand market here and ostensibly fixing them up but often there are mechanical shortcomings in the car that readily become apparent."

Cars newly registered in New Zealand are suspect and buyers should beware if the seller has owned it for only a few weeks, Stronach says. "Why have they purchased a car and then are selling it on again three weeks later? The real answer is, 'I've done enough work to get it on the road so it won't fall to bits as you drive home, but after that you're on your own'.

"New Zealanders are legendary in seeking bargains and ... are happy to stand out in the middle of traffic to look at these cars, which is a bit of a hazard. But the biggest hazard is to their wallet."

The trader will often give a false number so there's no way of chasing them up once you've driven off, he says.

"And because they've been passed off as a private seller, most people shrug their shoulders and say, 'There's nothing I can do'."

And they're right. So how can buyers protect themselves from making this mistake?

What to look out for: Find out how much the seller knows about the car. Ask questions and if they can't give you answers, walk away.

Unregistered traders will often say the car doesn't belong to them, but to a "family member". They use this excuse to get around the law that only allows individual traders to sell six cars a year without registering.

Rogue sellers tend to be middle-aged rather than young.

Check the vehicle's history online at websites such as motorweb, carjam, checka or aa.co.nz to see if it has been recently registered in New Zealand. If it's freshly imported and they're selling it on - or if they've only owned it for a few weeks - see it as a red flag. At about $25 a pop, vehicle history checks are a "great investment", Stronach says.

Why do a car history check?Entering the car's registration number on one of these sites can tell you if the car has been stolen, whether there's any money owing on it, and what the odometer readings were at each warrant of fitness check. You can also see whether it's a used import by comparing the year of manufacture with the year the car was first registered in New Zealand. Motorweb says one in three vehicles it checks have an inconsistent odometer, money owing or have been stolen.

Source: Consumer NZ