THE used car industry is the least trusted by consumers, according to a new survey by Auto Trader.

The car classified website’s September Market Report showed that only seven per cent of UK consumers who were quizzed claimed to trust used car dealerships.

The used car industry was compared against 13 other sectors, including property, finance and mobile services industries, but was ranked lowest.

Estate agents were trusted four per cent more than the used car industry, with the finance sector seven per cent higher than that. The new car industry scored much higher, coming in fourth out of the 13.

Auto Trader operations director Nathan Coe said: ‘Despite most consumers having positive experiences at the dealership when purchasing a car, the industry still suffers from a lack of trustworthiness, which resonates strongly with consumers.

Changing these perceptions will be a challenge but the reward could be substantial for the industry. It could remove some of the friction that consumers feel with the car-buying process, giving way to more positive perceptions, which could ultimately lead to people changing their cars more often.

Auto Trader’s Market Report, which surveyed 5,000 consumers, reveals that a lack of transparency within the online research process may be playing an integral role in perpetuating negative perceptions that consumers already have about the used car industry.

More than three-quarters of car buyers (76 per cent) quizzed claimed that transparency on price was the most important factor in the car-buying process, and with consumers now spending 11 hours researching online – double the amount of time spent researching offline – the report suggests that the automotive retail experience is considered less progressive than other online retail experiences by consumers today.

One-fifth of car buyers (20 per cent) claimed to have found vague, hard-to-find or misleading information recently in the car-buying process. Of this group, 42 per cent claimed it made the process more stressful, and 41 per cent said it took them longer than they would have liked to buy their next car.

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