At the beginning of last year, Merryn Somerset Webb, editor-in-chief of MoneyWeek, wrote an article for the Financial Times extolling the virtues of using an agent to find her a car (“a Mini, second hand, new model, low mileage, ambient lighting on the dashboard”), having realised “how stupidly difficult” it can be to buy one. Unfortunately, she did not use our services on that occasion, but her experience was positive nonetheless.
We specialise in finding quality used cars with low or ultra-low mileage and all you need to do is tell us what your requirements are by completing a brief questionnaire. The fee is 3% of the final purchase price (minimum £500), but our clients invariably save more than the fee as a result of our knowledge of the market and understanding of what constitutes value for money, as well as our negotiation skills. As Merryn discovered before taking the decision to use an agent, “there is no standard car and no standard price”, which makes buying one surprisingly difficult without a certain level of knowledge and expertise. It is also worth stressing that we only use recognised dealers, who have carried out all the requisite mechanical checks and who are able to provide the manufacturer’s approvals and guarantees.
We tend to discourage our clients from buying brand new vehicles, given the high level of depreciation which arises as soon as you drive them off the forecourt. The easy, albeit more expensive, option when buying a car is to visit your local main dealer and buy a brand new one, thereby enabling you to customize the vehicle and simply drive it away once it arrives from the factory. However, buying a low-mileage, almost-new car with the same specification is a far cheaper option. For example, an Audi A3 2.0 litre TDi may set you back over £30,000, but we managed to obtain one, with only 2,000 miles on the clock, at a 30% discount to the list price.
The main problem you face is how to go about finding a second-hand car without compromising on your preferred specifications, given that it is highly unlikely that your local dealer will be able to meet your criteria in full. One option might be to take time off work and scour the internet looking for the car that fits the bill, but most people do not have the ability or inclination to do so. Even if you choose to conduct your own search, it can be like looking for a needle in a haystack and a lot of people would not know where to begin or possess the knowledge to ask the pertinent questions.
The alternative is to use our services, in order to minimise the stress which a car search may involve if you are not a car aficionado and/or are time poor. By way of example, on 15th January we received an email from clients in Clapham asking us to find them a Golf. Just 10 days later, an immaculate, one year-old, tornado red, 1.2 litre Golf TSi, with mileage of under 14,000 and a two-year warranty, was delivered to their door with a full tank of petrol. All the clients needed to do was to complete the initial questionnaire and wire the money to the dealer once the purchase had been agreed. Furthermore, even after taking into account our fee, they saved themselves up to 10% of the purchase price of an equivalent example as a direct result of using us.
If you are considering buying a new car, please do not hesitate to get in touch with Andrew via the Almost Essential website. Hopefully, it will turn out to be one of the better decisions you make this year and save you time and money, as well as from going around the bend!