Guys,

I bought my 56 plate vRS, never looked at reg doc and was told by the salesman that it had 1 previous owner.....the reg doc came through the post this morning with my name on it and it lists 2 previous owners .....2 owners in 2 years doesn't feel as right as 1 owner from new......do I have a leg to stand on?

Cheers,

Dan

Who was the first?

It could have been pre-registered to a dealer?

Does it tell me? It just details the previous owner who got it in May 07 if my memory serves - would have to check the reg doc.....so, if it was registered in 2006 surely the dealer couldnt have it registered for a year before selling it?

Technically, if the dealer said it had 1 previous owner, and it is now registered to you and it now shows as 2 previous owners, he was correct!

I can understand the confusion though. If you bought privately and the owner said it had 1 previous owner you would think 1 previous, plus the seller, equals 2 owners. However, because you bought from a dealer and he said 1 previous, you assumed that he meant 1 owner, not 1 previous on top of the registered keeper.

It sounds like he's told the truth in a way in which you would think he meant 1 owner, a bit sneaky in my opinion, but at the time you bought it the V5 would have stated 1 previous owner!

What Ants said

My Felly only had 1 prev owner now it has 2 me being the second.

Unless I'm misreading. You might mean it states 2 other owners before you meaning you're the 3rd and not second?

Technically, if the dealer said it had 1 previous owner, and it is now registered to you and it now shows as 2 previous owners, he was correct!

I can understand the confusion though. If you bought privately and the owner said it had 1 previous owner you would think 1 previous, plus the seller, equals 2 owners. However, because you bought from a dealer and he said 1 previous, you assumed that he meant 1 owner, not 1 previous on top of the registered keeper.

It sounds like he's told the truth in a way in which you would think he meant 1 owner, a bit sneaky in my opinion, but at the time you bought it the V5 would have stated 1 previous owner!

Sounds plausable but very dodgy, if there had only been one registered keeper in the cars past the salesman would not have said there where no previous keepers :(

Sounds plausable but very dodgy, if there had only been one registered keeper in the cars past the salesman would not have said there where no previous keepers :(

Yeah, I agree, dodgy but like you say, it could happen! If the conversation went along the lines of 'previous keepers' rather than number of owners, then I would suspect the dealer has carefully worded his response!

The garage i bought from was not a skoda dealer and not the original supplier of the vehicle, it was a renault dealer who must have taken it in as part-ex.

The reg certificate is in front of me now:

Section 1, registered keeper, me

Section 2, Previous registered keeper, his name and address, he acquired the vehicle on 03/09/2007.

No. of former keepers: 2

Section 3, Declared new at 1st registration.

It doesn't add up to me.

Original Skoda dealer must have registered it on 14/12/2006 as that is the date of 1st registration on the reg doc.....so how did the first owner have it 9 months later?

Cheers,

Dan

Thats all correct then I think

I just dug up my sisters V5

Section 1 My sisters details

Section 2 Prev registered Keeper

Z.1 Prev keepers details

Z.2 Acquired veh on

Z no of former keepers 5

Section 3

1 Declared new at First Reg

Thats all correct then I think

I just dug up my sisters V5

Section 1 My sisters details

Section 2 Prev registered Keeper

Z.1 Prev keepers details

Z.2 Acquired veh on

Z no of former keepers 5

Section 3

1 Declared new at First Reg

So do you think I am the 3rd driver/owner of the car? Or could the guy before me have owned it from new?

Just dug mine out

Reg Keeper = Me

Section 2

z.1 Prev owner

z.2 when she bought the car

z No of Former Keepers = 1 (so I'm the second owner)

So you'll be the 3rd Owner/keeper

You might be able to get something back if you have the advert and evidence to show you were misinformed.

It could have been a dealers demo car for 9 months before being sold.

Did the garage put tax on it for you?

If they did then they have to register as a keeper in order to tax it, so when you enquired about the car it may have had one previous owner (whoever traded it in) and you agred to buy it, but if you needed tax the garage would register ownership, tax it then complete the sale to you meaning 3 owners in total (you, the garage and the original owner).

maybe the moral of the story is to buy your car from a genuine skoda dealer....

Why?

I bought mine from a Peugeot dealer.

It was exactly the right car for my budget and i was given the deal i wanted and offered a free service when it was due, but i declined and got a tank of fuel instead.

Not all 'other brand' dealers are out to pull one over on you, it could have been an honest answer that was confused by the customers interperation of 'previous owner'

what does it matter how many owners a car has had ? it doesnt make it any more valuable !!!

my 06 vrs has had 2 previous and me being the 3rd

when I bought my 07 plate gti 180 (brand new) I was the 2nd owner because it had been pre registered to the dealer and put on the forecourt and when i part exchanged it with another dealer I think they registered it to themselfs making them the 3rd owner !!!

Dan,

your car could be

1) Skoda UK

2) The owner on the V5

3) You.

if you look at the top of the fabia I forum there is a register of VRS SE's, look up your number on the list to see if it used to belong to a forum member.

This could technically clasify it as one owner, because the car may have been pre-registered and delivered to owner number 2 with delivery mileage. 56 reg ran from September 06 to March 07, so chances are it was registered as a late 56 rather than a 07 so the dealer got their quota completed.

Technically, if the dealer said it had 1 previous owner, and it is now registered to you and it now shows as 2 previous owners, he was correct!

I can understand the confusion though. If you bought privately and the owner said it had 1 previous owner you would think 1 previous, plus the seller, equals 2 owners. However, because you bought from a dealer and he said 1 previous, you assumed that he meant 1 owner, not 1 previous on top of the registered keeper.

It sounds like he's told the truth in a way in which you would think he meant 1 owner, a bit sneaky in my opinion, but at the time you bought it the V5 would have stated 1 previous owner!

I've had similar in the past at dealers, they carefully say (& point to) on the V5 "number of former keepers =n" but of course it's actually n+1 because they've just taken it as a trade-in from the "current registered keeper".

So, a few days later you get your new v5 through the post & bingo, you're left feeling betrayed by the wording.

I doubt they'll be much you could do, perhaps you might be able to get a discounted service for goodwill. But, if the car's otherwise as described, it's just one to chalk up to experience. Perhaps the previous owner could shed some light on the car's history to put your mind at rest?

Hope you enjoy your new motor, even if this has taken a little shine off it.

Isn't the moral of the story to have a good look at the existing V5 before you buy a car - I wouldn't imagine buying a car without seeing this document first. You can also put the reg number into the direct gov website and some 3rd party paid for websites to get the same kind of information to check on mileage and dates of transfer of keeper, just so you can check the the history of the car is kosher before you part with your cash.

Yes there are lots of good ideas after you have been "hooked" on a car, one issue is that when you hand a car in to a dealer, he wants to know how many previous owners its had - as this number increases so does their offer decrease! Probably that was why your dealer wanted to make this car up to increase its chances of making its windscreen price. Not a very clever trick if it was one, if you view a new unreg'd car previous owners are none, if the dealer has reg'd it (to make sales targets) but not used it, it will be offered for below unreg'd price as the warranty is already running - this fact will be reflected in what a dealer would give you two years down the line "its had two owners sir". When my daughter bought a secondhand Ibiza from a "not too honest" dealer (only Seat dealer in area), she was told that the car had only one owner and was exlease - in fact it had been reg'd to this dealer and the reg'd keeper was this individual, then one year down the line reg'd keeper was his wife - but my daughter was never offered the V5 for viewing, in fact mainly dealers sales personel just can't quite put their hands on these document at the moment as they are locked away for safe keeping - its an old trick and all part of dealing with buying an item that still holds a lot of its original value. Transparency is not a word known to the sales people in the motor trade.

No of owners doesnt usually affect resale value unless the car has been plagued with problems.

Transparency is not a word known to the sales people in the motor trade.

A very sweeping statement indeed!

Yes the dealer put 6 months tax on it for me, maybe this is why.....still unsure though...never mind! Cheers all.

in fact mainly dealers sales personel just can't quite put their hands on these document at the moment as they are locked away for safe keeping - its an old trick and all part of dealing with buying an item that still holds a lot of its original value.

em, how is it a "old trick" ?? our v5's are locked away as i guess all v5's are. if someone gets it they could use it for forgery, or even to try and reg the car to themselves for some dodgy reason or another. plus if you sell a car and the v5 has gone walkies it can take weeks for a replacement. makes sense to lock them away and only allow them out under strict supervision.

Transparency is not a word known to the sales people in the motor trade.

my god does anyone actually have a sensible head on their shoulders to think that the old "arthur daily" days are well and truely gone???

if all dealers are crooks then does that make all buyers liers?

Yes the dealer put 6 months tax on it for me, maybe this is why.....still unsure though...never mind! Cheers all.

it could just be he misread the v5, as has been said im sure it wont impact negatively on your experiance with your new car

there are still some people who change within 6 months of buying new cars. it could be the last owner got a job with a company car and sold it off to a dealer for a quick turn around?