First: private seller or dealer?
This matters more than the site. If you buy from a dealer (a trader), the Consumer Rights Act 2015 says the car must be of satisfactory quality, fit for purpose and as described, and you have 30 days to reject a faulty car for a refund. If you buy from a private seller, the car must be as described and the seller must have the right to sell it, but you have far fewer rights if it goes wrong.
Some traders pose as private sellers to avoid those duties. Signs: the name on the V5C is not the seller's, the seller has several cars for sale, they meet you somewhere other than their home, or the car was bought very recently. Search the seller's phone number online; if it appears in many car adverts, it is a trader.
Facebook Marketplace
Mostly private sellers, with plenty of traders mixed in. Adverts are quick to post and often thin on detail.
- Get the registration before you travel. Many adverts hide it. Ask for it and run the free checks. A seller who refuses is a reason to move on.
- Check the seller's profile. A brand-new profile, few friends, or a location far from where the car is, are warning signs.
- Do not rely on Facebook's buyer protection. Facebook's Purchase Protection covers items bought through its own checkout and shipping; its help pages list vehicles among the items that are not covered. Treat a Marketplace car like any private sale.
- Watch for the deposit scam. "Lots of interest, send a deposit to hold it" before you have seen the car is a common fraud. Never pay before you have seen the car and its paperwork.
Gumtree
A mix of private sellers and small traders. Gumtree's own advice is that a seller who makes excuses or says you cannot see the vehicle is a sign to be wary.
- Courier and escrow scams. A seller who is "away", offering to deliver the car after you pay into an escrow or delivery service, is a scam. Real sellers let you see the car.
- Too cheap to be true. A popular car priced well below the market often means a scam, a clone or a hidden write-off.
- Meet at the address on the V5C, in daylight.
AutoTrader
Mostly dealers, with private sellers too. Dealer adverts usually show the registration and mileage, which makes checking easier.
- Read the free basic check. AutoTrader says its listings come with a free basic check covering whether the car is recorded as stolen, scrapped, written off, imported or exported. It does not cover outstanding finance.
- Dealer adverts carry the Consumer Rights Act. Keep the advert (a screenshot is fine): it is part of how the car was described to you.
- Check the dealer. Look for a real address, reviews from more than one source, and whether they are a member of a trade body with a complaints process.
The checks for every site
- Run the plate before you travel. The free MOT history shows whether the MOT is current, the latest defects and advisories, and the mileage at each test. See how to read an MOT history.
- Compare the advert with the records. Make, model, colour, engine, fuel and year should match the official record. A mismatch can mean a cloned plate: a stolen car wearing the number plate of a legitimate one.
- Check the mileage. The advert's figure should be at or above the latest MOT reading. See how to spot clocked mileage.
- Check finance, stolen and write-off status. These are on private registers; use a paid check from a provider that holds them. See Cat S, Cat N and write-offs explained.
- View it properly. Use the viewing checklist: VIN against the V5C, the seller against the V5C, and a test drive from cold.
- Pay safely. Pay by bank transfer when you are with the car and have checked the V5C, and get a written receipt. Never pay a deposit for a car you have not seen.
How RegTail helps
Paste the advert link from any of these sites into RegTail, or snap a photo of the car if the advert hides the registration. RegTail reads the advert and finds the plate. The free check shows the current MOT status and condition. The full report (1 credit) tests the advert's claims (make, model, colour, mileage and the work the seller lists) against the records, flags a plate that does not match the car in your photo, and builds a viewing checklist for that car. RegTail does not check finance, stolen or write-off registers and says so in every report.