4 September 2007
Britons intend to spend over £58 billion in the next six months on buying a new set of wheels and almost one in three will use a loan to help them with the cost, a new report has found.
According to the Sainsbury's Bank Car Buying Index, 7.85 million people intend to buy a new car between September 2007 and February 2008 - an increase of 200,000 on the previous six months.
The research suggests that of the total amount of money spent on vehicles, 18.5% will be financed through personal loans, which is around £10.8 billion. This figure is up by £2.4 billion on six months ago.
Recent research by uSwitch.com found that when it comes to financing your new car, showrooms are not necessarily offering the best deals for customers. With average car showroom deals charging 10.76% APR, customers could save up to £985 by taking out a low rate personal loan instead.
Mike Naylor, Personal Finance expert at price comparison and switching website uSwitch.com, said: “Finding a competitive loan could save consumers almost 15% off the price of a new car (through the savings made on interest repayments), additionally, having the money ready to buy the car will also give them more bargaining power to get the best purchase price.
"Motorists looking to buy a new car this September should first visit a price comparison website such as uSwitch.com to find the most competitive personal loan to fund their purchase.”
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