Free guide ·
Questions to ask when buying a used car
Five minutes on the phone is the cheapest filter there is. It can save you a two-hour drive to a car that sold on Tuesday.
Ask about the car in front of you
Put in a registration and this writes the questions that car’s own MOT record earns, quoting real dates and real advisories back at the seller. Free, no account, nothing to install.
The questions that fit any car
These are asked of every car, and each one can end the call before you have spent anything but five minutes.
Is it still available, and has anyone got a deposit on it?
The cheapest question on the list. Adverts outlive the sale, and "someone is coming to see it Saturday" changes what the rest of the call is worth.
Are you selling this privately, or are you a trader?
A trader posing as a private seller strips your consumer rights — no Consumer Rights Act, no comeback. Worth settling before you spend a journey, and it decides which of the next questions apply.
If you are selling privately — is the V5C logbook in your name, at the address I would be coming to?
For a private sale, a seller who is not the registered keeper, or who is selling away from the registered address, is the most common shape of a car that is not theirs to sell. On a trade sale neither is expected — the trader will not be on the V5C at all.
Can you leave the car unstarted before I arrive, so I can hear it start from cold?
A warm engine hides cold-start rattle, smoke and slow cranking. This is the one check that has to be arranged in advance — on arrival it is already too late.
Does it come with both keys, the logbook, and the service history?
A second key is £150–300 to replace. Better to know what is missing before you value the car.
And these about the person selling it
How long have you owned it, and why are you selling?
The oldest question there is, and still the one whose answer changes the most.
Is there anything that does not work, or that you would fix if you were keeping it?
Asked plainly on the phone this gets a surprisingly honest answer, and it is much harder to walk back once you are standing at the car.
What a car’s own record turns up
The sharp questions are not general. They quote a specific car’s MOT history, its tax status and its recall record back at the seller, which is a very different conversation. An advisory that appears two years running is the strongest question on any list: it was seen, written down, and left. One that appeared last year and not this year was probably fixed, and asking about it makes you look like you cannot read a date, so it gets dropped.
“There is an outstanding safety recall on this car — has the work been done, and can you confirm with the dealer before I come?”
From the Diesel hatchback example report
“The May 2026 MOT flagged nearside front tyre worn close to legal limit/worn on edge — has that been sorted, and can you send me a photo or receipt?”
From the Hybrid SUV example report
“The June 2026 MOT flagged front brake discs lightly corroded at the edge — has that been sorted, and can you send me a photo or receipt?”
From the Electric SUV example report
And the ones that need a provenance check first
Outstanding finance, a write-off marker, a mileage record that does not run consistently. None of it is visible in the free DVLA and DVSA data, so these are questions you can only ask once something has told you there is something to ask about.
“The finance register shows an outstanding agreement on this car — will that be settled before I collect, and can you send me the settlement letter?”
A hire-purchase agreement was registered on 26 February 2026 with VW Financial Services over a 30-month term. It has not been settled. Until finance is settled the lender can repossess the car after you have paid for it. Get this answered before you travel, not at the kerb.
From the Diesel hatchback example report
Read the record before you dial
Every sharp question on this page came out of one thing: the car’s own MOT history. AutoSpect shows you that record free. Every test, every advisory, and the mileage plotted across all of them.
It helps to know what MOT advisories actually mean before you dial, and what you agree on the phone is only worth what you verify at the car itself.
Questions are generated from official DVLA and DVSA records. A phone call is not a substitute for inspecting the car, and AI analysis is a probabilistic tool rather than a certification.