Getting a better motoring deal
Love them or hate them, car ownership is a fact of modern life. Unless you live in the middle of a town or city you will need a car to get to work or school, do the shopping or just visit friends.
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Car Insurance
Giles Chapman
- Top 10 forecourt tips
- Buying privately
- Buying at auction
- Your rights as a car buyer
- Timing
- Buying a new car
- Buying second-hand
- Buying Insurance
- Car Loans
- Useful links
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Car Loans
Dealers will offer car finance on both new and second-hand cars, but that can be one of the most expensive places to obtain finance. On the whole try to avoid Hire Purchase – it can be very expensive and the car isn’t yours until the finance is paid off. If you default, the finance company will reclaim your car.
It’s also really important to check and compare APR (Annual Percentage Rate) which is calculated on the total amount you’ll be paying including interest and any set-up fees.
There is a host of other places to get the money. You can get specific car loans or normal personal loans from most banks, building societies and other finance houses – but shop around for the best finance deal in the same way that you would for the car.
It’s also really important to check and compare APR (Annual Percentage Rate) which is calculated on the total amount you’ll be paying including interest and any set-up fees.
There is a host of other places to get the money. You can get specific car loans or normal personal loans from most banks, building societies and other finance houses – but shop around for the best finance deal in the same way that you would for the car.
- Check the interest rate. If 0% finance is available make sure you know what happens when the deal ends. Remember the 0% has to be financed from somewhere, probably by a higher price for the car and you won’t be able to negotiate a discount.
- Find out what happens if you want to repay the loan early, are there early repayment fees?
- Can you negotiate a better deal on the car if you arrange a stand-alone personal loan, which effectively makes you a cash buyer? The dealer might offer an attractive deal on the car if you take out the dealer’s finance, but any benefit might be more than cancelled out by a high APR.
- Check to see if the loan provider offers any useful benefits, for instance, AA Personal Loans offers a free six-month warranty for car loans, regardless of where you buy the car. This is very useful if the car breaks down soon after you buy it, especially if it was a private deal.