What people ask before a commission is placed.
Twelve answers, set down the way we would put them on a call — the awkward ones included. The two carrying a star are the ones people get wrong most often, so they lead.
What gets asked first.
The star marks the two that decide whether we are the right practice for you. They are answered in full rather than in a line.
01★ Are you a broker, or an adviser of some kind?+
Neither, in the usual sense. This is a research and consultation practice working for a buyer: no stock of our own, nothing paid to us by any seller, and no car of ours to move. You are buying the research, and the research is the whole of what we supply.
02★ How is the fee worked out, and what do I actually receive?+
Four bands cover consultations up to €200. Which one applies turns on the volume of work the brief carries, not on what the car itself costs. Your band, and the figure inside it, are put in writing before anything starts. What arrives is the file set out on the How it works page — scope, candidates, the price reading with its comparables, and the points to test at a viewing.
03What information can you actually get hold of?+
Advertised listings, published specification for the build, whatever servicing and MOT history has been recorded, and reported fault patterns for the model. Anything that lives only in the metal — panel condition, how a car drives, what a ramp would reveal — is outside it, and we list it for you to check instead of guessing.
04Where does the price range come from?+
From listings for the same model at a similar age and mileage. We take the spread those make, state the band it supports, and attach the comparables themselves.
05Can you say whether this car is worth buying?+
We can say where it sits against its market, and what the available information does and does not answer. Whether it is worth having turns on how you will use it and what you can live with — and that call stays with you.
06What do you need from me to begin?+
A budget, the models or bodies in play, a mileage ceiling and an age floor, the distance you will cover to view, and anything non-negotiable. Those five make the brief workable.
07Will you attend a viewing, or negotiate on my behalf?+
No. We are not a buying agent and we do not act in the transaction. What we do instead is prepare the open points and the questions so that your viewing is a test rather than a visit.
08How long does a commission take?+
It turns on how many candidates the brief produces and how complete the record is for the model. The scope note gives the turnaround before work starts, so the timescale is agreed rather than assumed.
09What happens if I do not end up buying anything?+
The fee is for the research, and the research was delivered. Whether you buy a car is a separate decision and does not change what was commissioned or what it cost.
10Do you work with people outside your area?+
Yes. Nothing in the research depends on where you are. Enquiries from anywhere in the UK are welcome, and the brief can be sent by email or through the form.
11Who are you, and can I check?+
Select Cars Countrywide Limited, registered in England & Wales under company number 15313927, with the public record available at Companies House.
12What will you not do?+
No car sold to you, no inspection done on your behalf, no negotiation in the deal, and no promised outcome. And no figure put in front of you without what it rests on.
