Buying a second hand car can always be a bit of a worry. You never quite know what exactly you are buying even if you do all the research.

If you are buying or have bought a second hand car in the region of £1500 or less then research shows that you can expect to have to spend a similar amount of money again on it over the next year or so.

It is important to do some checks before committing to the purchase of a second-hand vehicle. Firstly you should ask to see the HPI certificate which is a check to show that the car has not been subject to a write-off, have outstanding finance on it or plate changes etc. It can also sometimes show you mileages taken from MOT’s and the sale of the car so you can check that this matches with what is currently showing on the odometer. Next, you should have a look online at the current and previous MOT’s. Although this won’t show you everything it will show you what it has failed on previously and if there are any advisories on the last MOT. If you do own a second hand car and find that it needs a lot of money spending on it then you need to decide if you should spend the money on it and get it fixed or if you should sell or scrap the vehicle and put the money towards a new car.