Need some advice please :), recently found out the car I was buying (ford fiesta st-2)had been stolen and recovered with little details about it, mechanically seems fine but there are some scratches on the driver's side door handle which I assume is how they got in.

Do you think this will affect resale value of the car?

How can I prevent it from being stolen again?

Thanks 🙂

 

Assuming that it was properly categorised then yes that will affect resale value.  Used to be around 25% reduction for any sort of write off status but I don't know whether that's still the same now.

The Fiesta is the most stolen car in the UK.  With most of those being ST's.  If you live in a rough area, choose something else!  If you're set on a Fiesta then fit an aftermarket immobiliser and a steering wheel lock at minimum.  There are still ways of stealing them like that but it should reduce the chances considerably.

The stolen mark has been removed on the fiesta due to it being recovered so it doesn't say it's stolen

13 minutes ago, la_wacko_jacko123 said:

The stolen mark has been removed on the fiesta due to it being recovered so it doesn't say it's stolen

If it went through insurance then it should have been categorised.  They're usually cat X nowadays if no damage was done.  Or cat N if there was some damage done.

If there isn't any record of it being stolen & recovered then obviously the price won't be affected as no-one would ever know?

Yeah but I would like to be honest when I sell the car I wouldn't want to lie or try and hide it 

2 minutes ago, la_wacko_jacko123 said:

Yeah but I would like to be honest when I sell the car I wouldn't want to lie or try and hide it 

Ok then, in that case it won't reduce the value until you mention it.  So it's your choice. 

I would definitely check that it wasn't recorded through insurance though.  I own a cat N write off myself.  It's not written on the logbook, but is illegal not to tell a buyer.

Would this show up in a full "premium" report on one of the many on line checking services? - they're usually no more than £10.

 

1 hour ago, Eric Bloodaxe said:

Would this show up in a full "premium" report on one of the many on line checking services? - they're usually no more than £10.

 

There is a free way to check it.

Hi.

If it's of any help we recommend these for vehicle security. Maybe they can offer you some advice.

https://www.gapsecurity.co.uk/

Regards,

Dan.