The Ultimate Guide to Buying Used Cars
In 2026, it’s getting wiser to be more financially mindful. Expenses seem to be rising everywhere, including when you’re on the road. At David Hayton, our experts are dedicated to finding the perfect used vehicle for you, with any lifestyle and budget in mind. Take a look at the guide below, covering everything you need to know about buying a great value used car.
Spotting a good ad
It can be tempting to look for ‘used car for cheap’ when you’re trying to save money, but that can show you all kinds of adverts that, sadly, may be too good to be true. A good car ad should, in our view, contain the following:
- Clear photos of the vehicle, both inside and out. Make sure you can see the odometer, the interior seats and features and any marks or bumps to the outside of the car
- A thorough description of the vehicle, including how many keys come with the vehicle, the service history and a solid description of how the vehicle drives and runs
- Any details of any write-off statuses where applicable. We would advise to stay away from a car if it has any write off statuses within its history, as the car may be weakened even if it has been repaired
Remember to trust your gut, if you’re not sure in any way, it’s better to be safe than sorry.
Private vs Public Sale
With the used car market, there’s plenty of people selling their own vehicles, especially with the rise of personal vehicle ads on Facebook Marketplace and Autotrader. However, your rights as a buyer are very different when buying from an individual compared to buying from a reputable used car dealer. A private seller may be selling a car cheaper, but they don’t often come with the proper aftercare that you’d receive from a dealership.
Private Sellers e.g. Facebook Marketplace, Gumtree, Autotrader Individual Sale etc
For example, let’s say you buy a car from a private seller who advertised on social media. You do your due diligence, review the ad carefully and even organise a test drive with the seller. You think the car is as advertised, you’re happy about it and you buy the car from the seller.
A week later, the car stops working, you break down and after getting home and getting the car safely back too, you try to contact the seller to discuss the issue with the car. The private seller tells you that as the car was sold as advertised, and the issue wasn’t there while they were selling it, so they do not need to take any action - and they’re absolutely right.
During private sales it’s the responsibility of the buyer to ensure the vehicle is as advertised, and once the sale is finalised, the seller is under no obligation to provide any aftersale care, or provide a warranty for the vehicle. This means if something goes wrong, you’re essentially on your own to deal with things, leaving you potentially out of pocket.
Public Sellers e.g. a reputable used car dealership such as David Hayton Autstore
Let’s look at the same situation but this time, buying from David Hayton;
You spot a used car you like on our website, and you reach out to our friendly team to organise a test drive and viewing of the car. You head to your local David Hayton dealership, greeted by our friendly team, and walk through the entire vehicle before heading out on your test drive. This includes the thorough checks all of our stock goes through, the minimum 3 month warranty that comes with all of our used vehicles and our extended warranty packages. After completing your test drive, you head back to the dealership to discuss our finance options including part exchange, potential delivery of the vehicle and the after sales care you’ll receive once you buy the vehicle.
A week after buying and receiving the car, something goes wrong and you reach out to our team to discuss this. Because of the minimum 3 month warranty that comes with all of our used vehicles, we’re able to get your car booked in and inspected to make sure everything’s okay. After a thorough check from our team of experts, we return the car to you in full working order, and none of this has cost you an extra penny, because of your warranty. Buying from a respected dealership like David Hayton comes with more peace of mind, and we’re here to help once you’re on the road in your used vehicle.
Choose David Hayton Autostore for your next Used car
Ultimately, it’s your decision on where you buy your next used vehicle, but for more peace of mind, speak to one of the experts at David Hayton, and take a look at our range of used vehicles!
