Shopping for a used car, the terms Non VAT qualifying and Gross VAT qualifying will sooner or later show up. These terms are important for company cars; buying a car privately, it is of no importance.

The quality of a gearbox depends highly on the previous owner(s). This means that you can find out what the general condition of a car is by just checking the gearbox. A poorly functioning gearbox can very well mean that the car in general has been treated badly. An important part which you should check in combination with the gearbox is the clutch.

You can use the PreOwnedCarAdvice Checklist during the purchase of a used car. Follow the checklist to use all the knowledge of our handbook in practice.

Have you found a car that ticks all the boxes, then you should try to get a discount on the asking price. Because there is always a margin of profit, between the asking price and the dealers purchase price, it is up to you to negotiate the best possible deal.