Archive for October, 2009
A Young Drivers Guide To Car Finance
Youve seen the car you want at a price you can afford the question now is how are you going to pay for it? The answer to a large extent depends on whether youre buying a new or used car.
If you plan on buying a used car and keeping it for at least four years a straight loan or hirepurchase agreement will cost less in the long run.
If you intend to buy a new car and keep it for less than three years before replacing it with another new car you should consider a personal contract purchase plan.
Personal Loan
Youll take this out in advance to buy the car outright then repay the debt in agreed monthly installments.
There are two types of personal loans secured and unsecured. Secured loans are cheaper have a lower APR rate the interest you have to pay on the loan but if you fail to make your repayments the lender can confiscate whatever you have offered as security which is usually your house.
You will need a regular income and will need to be over eighteen years old.
Hire purchase
You pay a deposit followed by a fixed amount for an agreed number of months. Once you have finished these monthly payments you legally own the car.
As a rule Hire Purchase is only available for new and nearly new cars. You must be aware that until you have made the final payment the bank car dealer or loan company still owns the car. Until then you cannot sell the car without obtaining permission. If you fall behind by as little as two repayments the finance company can repossess the car.
Hire purchase is essentially a type of secured loan a loan secured against an asset i.e. the car. Fail to make the payments and you lose the car. As with a normal loans pay close attention to the APR.
Personal Contract Purchase
This is available for new and nearly new cars only. You pay a deposit up to 20 of the total price followed by agreed number of low monthly repayments for up to three years at which time a final payment must be made. This figure is agreed at the start and is known as the Guaranteed Minimum Future Value GMFV. At the end of the agreement you can keep the car hand it back or partexchange it for another new car.
If you want to keep the car you must pay the GMFV. If you hand it back you owe nothing more but you wont have a penny of your deposit or payments refunded.
In effect this is a lease agreement. The car belongs to the finance company until the contract ends. If you end the agreement early you may have to pay a penalty. Usually the car is subject to agreed annual mileage limits with a penalty if you exceed them must be properly serviced and kept in good condition.
Whatever finance option you decide on always read the terms and conditions to make sure you understand how much your loan will cost in total. Under the new Financial Services Authority regulations these must be clearly visible and explained in plain English.
Remember a loan over a longer period of time might seem tempting due to the lower monthly payments but due to the APR accumulating you will end up paying more in the long run. Always work out in advance how much you will end up paying overall for your car loan.
Sometimes car dealerships will offer zero or very low interest rates. Approach these with caution. It may mean you lose out on discounts or extras that someone with another type of loan will get. Also the amount of deposit required for such deals can be high.
Whatever loan or finance deal you take out it is likely that you will be asked to take out Payment Protection Insurance. This insurance against you be unable to meet your payments. Before you agree read the Terms and Conditions very carefully. Most PPIs wont offer to pay the full amount you owe if you fall on hard times. The conditions can be harsh.
Never accept the first finance deal offered by the dealer as this will try the most expensive option the one they will get the best commission on. Always negotiate for a better deal.
Dealers can make more money out of the finance options than they do from the sale of the car so always be careful when asking them for finance as they may not be giving you the best loan. If they offer you finance check it out against other loans before you accept any finance agreement.
Don’t let the dealer rush you into a finance deal. They must by law give you a full written quotation which you can take away and consider. If they offer you a ‘deal for today only’ don’t let this fool you into signing a finance agreement.
Don’t give the dealer too much information when requesting a quotation as they to shop around lenders to get themselves a better commission can use this information. You should shop around for yourself.
You should also bare in mind that when it comes to costing a car you should also include the likely running costs of the car young drivers car insurance road tax fuel costs servicing and so on.
About the writer: Richard Jenkins is owner of the driving test and driving schools website www.drivingtestsuccess.com
Available Volvo Parts
What practices in acquisition do most consumers utilize when they set off to buy those Volvo Parts they need? Do they employ a great degree of caution? Or are a number of them the type of buyer who just settles on the first or second or third item that looks and sounds good? Do they place tremendous faith on the principle of hitsandmisses philosophically taking things as they come?
For those who find themselves more in the second category it is worth knowing that while some risks are worth taking some may come at too high a cost. Hence if one wishes to employ a bit more care in one’s car dealings better to rely on the services of a dependable site that has the expertise as well as professional knowhow of experts in the automotive industry to back one up.
Buying a number of Volvo Parts do not simply entail obtaining the first item that catches one’s fancy or satisfies one’s whims. First there’s the matter of checking if the online source one wishes to acquire the item from is trustworthy. This can mean a great many things but first and foremost the site has to have enough credibility in meeting client needs and requirements. How does that work?
It has to with product quality. With that it pertains to the ability of the Volvo parts one may happen to pay for to survive harsh working conditions. A smooth and laudable car performance does not simply happen at the flick of a finger. Rather it is the result of a myriad Volvo auto components working to bring it about.
About the writer: I’m a high school educator in the school near my place. But beside from being educator I enjoy writing about things that I like and love.
Atv Accidents
As the popularity of all terrain vehicles ATVs has risen sharply so have the numbers of accidents injuries and deaths caused by the vehicles. Design flaws inappropriate marketing and cheap defective parts create a dangerous combination which all too often results in catastrophic and fatal accidents.
Marketing and inadequate warnings
ATVs are an indispensible tool in some professions and when in the right hands can even be used to save lives. However inappropriate has caused many ATVs to fall into the hands of inexperienced riders and even children who lack the training skill judgment strength and motor skills necessary to operate the vehicles safely.
According to the U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission CPSC from 1999 to 2005 there were 3618 reported ATVrelated deaths and an estimated 796500 ATVrelated injuries treated in emergency rooms. More than 25 of deaths and over 30 of injuries occurred in children under the age of 16.
Advertised for power speed and as if they are appropriate for extreme sports ATV marketing encourages unsafe riding and the illusion that they are designed to operate under conditions which will in reality cause a dangerous crash.
Many lack the proper warning labels and materials or have manuals which are confusing and unclear. Dealerships and rental centers often fail to pass on the documentation when it exists.
Design flaws
Many models of ATVs have design flaws which make them prone to rollover even at low speeds and on level ground. Most ATV riders purchase rent the vehicles with the intention of using them for offroad activities under conditions which almost always include uneven surfaces.
Other design flaws prevent the vehicles from protecting riders from injury in the event of a crash allowing body parts to be crushed or drug under the vehicle.
Defective parts
Faulty or inadequate parts can fail and cause the vehicle to go out of control rollover or even explode. Defective ATV parts can include:
Steering components
Welds on control components
Brakes
Throttle
Transmissions
ATV accident lawsuits
Under most circumstances licensing and insurance are not required when operating a vehicle off road. ATV accident lawsuits can include some of the typical elements of auto accident lawsuits but they have some distinct differences. It is not unusual for drivers in ATV accidents to be children under 16 years of age.
Many but not all ATV accident lawsuits involve product liability. Responsible parties can include:
Manufacturers
Dealerships
Rental centers
ATV drivers
Adults responsible for children driving or riding
About the writer:nbsp;nbsp;If you or a loved one has been injured or killed in an ATV accident in Maryland Washington DC or Virginia please contact the law offices of Chaikin Sherman Cammarata Siegel P.C. The ATV accident lawyers at Chaikin Sherman Cammarata Siegel P.C. will examine your case and consult with you to determine what damages may be entitled to recover at no cost to you.