Damaged and Crashed car report for August 2021
Crashed and damaged cars
The latest crashed and damaged cars report has been released by MyVehicle.ie for the month of August 2021. We hope that you are not one of the unfortunate buyers who bought one of these previously damaged vehicles.
Franchise Dealerships
During August, 241 vehicles were discovered to be written-off. The good news is that the numbers are down by 56 compared to the month of July.
It is always a good idea to purchase a used car from a main dealer. Sometimes, though, even main dealers can get caught out and sell a used car that may have had previous undesirable history such as damage or even a
Make sure to get a full vehicle history check, even if you are buying a car from a main dealer. Not all car checks though, are the same. MyVehicle.ie has more damage data and alerts than any other supplier in Ireland.
It has become known that some dealers buy a vehicle on foot of a trade report by VMS (Vehicle Management System), our parent company, and then sell that very same vehicle to a member of the public with an inferior report from another history check supplier. That report by another history check provider may very well not show any damage alert at all on the vehicle.
Discrepancies at the main dealerships
Franchise dealers had 98 vehicles for sale which were discovered to have mileage discrepancies during August. This is down by 17 from the previous month. This shows the importance of running a car check even when you are buying from a main dealer.
Independent car dealers
During the month of June we actually saw a drop in damaged vehicles sold at independent garages down from 599 in June to 448 in August. This was a drop of 151 vehicles crashed or damaged sold at Independent dealerships.
Again, when buying any used car, always get a car check. Never just take a seller's word for it. A dealer may say that the car “just had a tip”. This may very well be code for; ‘it might have crashed and damaged before, but I have told you just enough to cover myself and I hope it doesn’t come back on me’.
Unscrupulous car traders are very prevalent in the used car market. The only way to protect yourself from buying a damaged or categorised car is to get a background car check.
Discrepancies at independent dealerships
As with car damage, there was also a drop in the number of cars showing mileage discrepancies during August. On sale at Independent dealers were 152 vehicles, (76 down from June) showing some kind of mileage discrepancy displayed on the report.
In many more instances these discrepancies are never resolved and are found to be 'clocked' after investigation.
Private Car Sales Sector
The private car sector is where you will normally find the biggest problems and the biggest risk but during the month of August there was a massive drop in vehicles sold which were damaged.
During the month of June, there were 1,031 vehicles sold in the private sector which were previously damaged or written-off but this went down to 798 vehicles during the month of August, a drop of 233 from the previous month.
Remember that you have almost zero chance of any comeback or consumer rights after you have bought a car from a private seller and subsequently find out that there is an issue.
It also should be noted that many private sellers may not know anything about car history checks and may themselves have bought the car from the previous owner without knowing its true history.
The previous owner might also have not known about car checks and so a buyer in the private market runs a bigger risk than buying from a main dealer.
Mileage discrepancies in the private car sales sector
Many private sellers do not record mileage and many private buyers do not buy car checks so also do not record mileage for the record. In August, 293 vehicles were sold privately with some kind of mileage discrepancy, which is down from 110 in June, a major drop of 183.
Don’t be one of these unfortunate car buyers. Even if you have already bought a car, it's never too late to run your car background check. It is best to do it sooner or later and even after you have purchased the vehicle just in case you need to contact the seller for quick resolution.
Thousands of cars are showing a hidden past each month, so make sure you know what you are buying. Your pre-purchase research should be second-nature as it will prove to be extremely important. Remember...
Every vehicle has a past, check if it has a future!
Author
Justin Kavanagh
Justin Kavanagh is a recognised leader
in automotive intelligence and vehicle
data supply to the entire motor industry.
He has almost 20 years experience in
building systems from the ground up.
As the Managing Director of Vehicle
Management System, he understands the
need and importance of trustworthy and
reliable vehicle history and advice to
both the trade and the public.
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