Pre purchase inspection

[Lannister902]

Hi,
Just wondering what people's opinions are of AA and RAC offering pre purchase inspections of cars if you're planning on buying it?
Looking at the check list, majority is just basic checks, but also do diagnostic checks on the car..

With the expense or waste of money?

[sociopath]

It's a great way to move money from your account to theirs.

[hersh]

If you buying unseen due to distance then I can see a good reason for getting it checked
BiL has bough a couple that way

[Zumbruk]

Swallow your "I know all about cars" pride and get one done. After a couple of spectacularly poor buying decisions, I always have one done. I'm reasonably sure they've saved me more than they cost over the years.

Choose the option for the "off the record" chat with the guy who did the inspection. They tend to be franker than in the written report.

[Countdown]

It depends on how expensive the car was. For something under a couple of grand I'd buy it based on my own judgement. For something over £20k and/or known for going expensively wrong I'd get the inspection done.

I had one done on my wife's XC60 and that was a very thorough report. it didn't pick anything up and the only thing we've noticed (after 12 months of ownership) is a slow puncture. the 3225 was worth it for peace of mind.

[Lannister902]

It's a fair distance away, so sounds like I'd be better off getting it.
Any recommendations which company to go to?

[SV_WDC]

If it's a specialist marque then could be better to get an inspection by a specialist (either mobile or indy/main dealer); they will know exactly what to look for in terms of common faults, condition.

AA or RAC will be more 'standard' but also cheaper.

No opinion on who is better having never used them. Couple mates have used AA checks, but there probably isn't much difference between the two.

[romeodelta]

Countdown said:

the 3225 was worth it for peace of mind.

I hope that’s a typo