Althought it’s unlikey to eliminate human contact entirely, electronic shopping through the internet has opened some exciting opportunities for car sellers and buyers alike.

It’s your first point of contact with potential buyers, so it’s important the advert conveys the right message.

If You Get it Wrong Your Phone Just Wont Ring!

The Ad

· The EXACT type of car, if it’s a Vauxhall Astra 1.6 LS 5 door then put that – Vauhall LS just isn’t enough
· Year and Registration – 1999/T is much better than T Reg.
· Mileage – State it in the ad – low mileage means nothing to a buyer.
· Colour – Keep it obvious metalic blue means more than Sorrento Shimmer.
· Tax & Mot – Be precise as to when it runs out.
· Service History – Honest is best policy – don’t say full history unless it really is. If it isn’t, leave it out!
· Number of owners – Include if there has only been a few for it’s age.
· Features – Include all the features of your car, Air conditioning, CD player, Alloys, Alarm, Central locking, ABS etc – it’s the featuers that will entice the buyers to call you!
· Price – Buyers will expect to bargain with the price. Make sure your asking price is realisitc.
· Colour Photograph – Attach a photo, it will make your advert stand out (when taking the photo make sure the surrounding area is clean and tidy!)

Things not to say

Here’s a list of favourites that tell the buyer nothing – Leave them out!
Lovely Driver
Good Condition for Year
Beautiful Condition
One Lady Owner
No Time Wasters
First to See Will Buy.

Your responsibilities

The seller must not mis-describe or misrepresent the vehicle – to this end, if the car is described as having had just “one previous owner” and this is not the case, then the car has failed to conform to its description and a claim for compensation or rejection may follow. As above the description must have been made prior to the sale and must have been a factor in deciding to buy the car.

As you can see the usual rights that you expect from a dealer are not applicable and there is usually little that can be done about a car that has developed a defect after the sale unless the sale was prompted by a mis-description