'Stolen Recovered'
Author
Discussion

Simpo Two

Original Poster:

92,995 posts

296 months

Thursday 29th April 2010
quotequote all
Currently interested in a Jaguar on eBay but it says 'stolen recovered'.

Is this a definite dealbreaker like 'Cat D write-off' or can such cars still be good buys? Is it recorded somewhere like HPI etc?

The rest of the car seems to be very clean, no damage.

Mr_annie_vxr

9,270 posts

242 months

Thursday 29th April 2010
quotequote all
Simpo Two said:
Currently interested in a Jaguar on eBay but it says 'stolen recovered'.

Is this a definite dealbreaker like 'Cat D write-off' or can such cars still be good buys? Is it recorded somewhere like HPI etc?

The rest of the car seems to be very clean, no damage.
Find out more about the theft etc.

Could have been stolen and left in a lock up or container, or ragged to crap doing crime or had things done to disguise its origin.

Have you got a link to it?

S3_Graham

12,835 posts

230 months

Thursday 29th April 2010
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as is the standard answer... why bother? if there are other cars out there and this isn't massively cheaper why take the risk. It will always throw up questions when you come to sell it so what you may save now, you will loose come sale time.

kambites

71,599 posts

252 months

Thursday 29th April 2010
quotequote all
Well it probably is a cat-D write off so if you consider that to be a definite deal breaker then don't bother. Personally I'd happily buy either a cat-D or a stolen recovered car IF it was significantly cheaper than other such vehicles which didn't have a chequered history.

Simpo Two

Original Poster:

92,995 posts

296 months

Thursday 29th April 2010
quotequote all
Mr_annie_vxr said:
Have you got a link to it?
Yep: http://cgi.ebay.co.uk/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&am...

It's proving very hard to find an S-Type in the colour/spec I want which is why I haven't ditched it yet. I'd love to check this one out but it's also on the other side of the country...

I asked him for the reg no, so Jaguar can confirm the spec, and he supplied it quickly but Jaguar don't have it on their records. However, they said it might have been sold with a personalised plate. Seller also said: 'service book is not stamped, ii have the details of the dealer who service the car so the book can be sent for the stamps, best number to get me on is 07545xxxxxx or 01380xxxxxx'

Edited by Simpo Two on Thursday 29th April 19:19

R1 Loon

26,988 posts

208 months

Thursday 29th April 2010
quotequote all
"Stolen Recovered" translates as "HPI Check for purchaser". If it is subject to an insurance claim then it will be recorded as a write off on there. Depending on the insurer this could be anything from a Cat B (not allowed back on the road and must be broken for parts), through Cat C & D (can be put back on the road witha VIC chck for Cat Cs) or even a Cat X.

Any of those mean it should be priced at least 10% below a similar car that isn;t a "write off"

Simpo Two

Original Poster:

92,995 posts

296 months

Thursday 29th April 2010
quotequote all
Ah I see - so a car can be a 'write-off' and in perfect condition - if an insurance company has paid out on it?

Sorry to seem dim but I don't usually paddle in these waters! (and don't want to buy a 'blighted' car if it means I can't sell it one day)

Mr_annie_vxr

9,270 posts

242 months

Thursday 29th April 2010
quotequote all
It would for me depend on hoe it was stolen/recovered. Lots of them these days are stolen, hidden and sold on. I would suggest that is one of those as it doesn't seem the type the thieves keep and rag.

Things I'd never touch would be stolen/recovered s4's rs4's etc. They tend to keep these and rag them around using it for other crimes.

If the price is well below the standard price for that car I would not rule it out.

TomM

662 posts

226 months

Thursday 29th April 2010
quotequote all
I had a stolen / recovered VR6 Highline, it was stolen when 2 months old - and found the same night minus interior and wheels - was one of the best cars I ever owned - but was a real pain to sell.

But - I did get it cheap because of this so it all equalled out.

Each case is different.

Simpo Two

Original Poster:

92,995 posts

296 months

Friday 30th April 2010
quotequote all
Wow, this forum moves fast!

Useful comments so far, many thanks.

Bump for the morning crew!

Risotto

3,933 posts

243 months

Friday 30th April 2010
quotequote all
If the seller has mentioned it has been stolen recovered then (unless they're being extraordinarily honest) its been written off.

Car is stolen
Owner informs police/insurance
No trace of car is found
Insurers write off and pay out
Car is subsequently found.

Check all paperwork, VIN, locks, keys, etc and don't pay anything like the market value for a straight one. Don't worry about resale - as long as you pay proportionally less when buying, it doesn't matter that you'll get proportionally less when you sell.


Edited by Risotto on Friday 30th April 11:34

was8v

2,013 posts

226 months

Friday 30th April 2010
quotequote all
In reality stolen/recovered means that someone took the car without permission and drove it for a bit (perhaps aggressively), and maybe damaged it a little.

How do you know a previous owner didn't drive the car every day in exactly the same way as the thief for a whole year?

You don't, therefore it has very little bearing on the car. Go and check the car out, if its a nail, walk on. If its as good as any other at the same age/mileage then pick up a good deal.

Same applies to damaged / repaired - who knows what damage was done to the car at 6 months old (when it was worth ££££) and repaired by the insurance company - there is no record! If I know for sure a car was damaged/repair (from HPI) I'd prefer to see evidence (pic of original damage, receipts for repair), but even this has little bearing on the car.

Buying a used car is all down to your inspection of it. If you are not capable of doing an inspection, pay a professional to do it.

Because of peoples attitude, recorded cars are worth less, this means you get better value.

E.g.

10k car with 10% depreciation per year. After 2 years its worth £8k, losing you £2k.
Same car recorded cat c/d/x -you should pay circa 20% less for it. So it is £8k to buy. after 2 years its worth 20% less than £8k = £6400.

The recorded car has lost less money is depreciation - £1600.


Edited by was8v on Friday 30th April 12:04

Aviz

1,669 posts

200 months

Friday 30th April 2010
quotequote all
Mine was stolen and used in a local robbery. Found it with the keys and a few miles on it, but perfect nick. Even the tenner in the centre console was still there. Insurers paid out before it was found.

It was sold on by the insurers as a Cat-D Stolen Recovered, with no damage and all keys.

I had the option of taking it back which i refused, in which case it wouldn;t have been recorded at all.

Worth noting, that if a car is stolen, smashed up, and the insurers repair it. Then return it to the owner, it would not show as stolen recovered.

Edited by Aviz on Friday 30th April 12:07

Simpo Two

Original Poster:

92,995 posts

296 months

Saturday 1st May 2010
quotequote all
Thanks for all the information folks. I spent a nervous morning yesterday checking and re-checking all the info, HPI, many phone calls etc.... Due to horrendous traffic and roadworks it took six hours to get there and four hours back - but I got it biggrin

The Nur

9,168 posts

216 months

Saturday 1st May 2010
quotequote all
Pics please biggrin Lets have a look at this Jag of yours

Simpo Two

Original Poster:

92,995 posts

296 months

Saturday 1st May 2010
quotequote all
Still recovering - will post pic when I've cleaned it properly!

Was sorting out the paperwork just now and we forgot to do the tear-off bits on the V5 - seems a rather elementary oversight from a dealer - anyway, I suppose I'll have to send his bit back to him to complete!