No more haggling! 70 per cent of Brits have sold something online and almost half would sell their car the same way

Selling items online is so easy nowadays. Clothes, video games, fitness products… it’s so simple to upload their details and sit back and watch as people snap them up.

But perhaps surprisingly, many of us are also happy to sell larger, more expensive items such as cars this way too.

In fact, an exclusive survey for has found that more than one in five of us has said goodbye to an old motor by listing it on a website.

And the younger you are, the more likely you are to do so. Nearly a third of 18 to 29-year-olds have sold a car this way, whereas just one in ten of the over-60s have done so!

SATISFIED CUSTOMERS

While some people who have sold a car online chose to deal with potential buyers directly, selling to an online car buying service like Cazoo appears to be a more popular option.

In fact, nearly half (49 per cent) of the 2,000 respondents in the survey said they’d used such a service when they wanted to bid adieu to their old set of wheels.

Men were much more likely to have done so – in fact, 58 per cent of guys (compared to just 39 per cent of women) had used an online car buying service.

Glaswegians in particular had jumped on board enthusiastically with a massive four out of five having sold a car in this way. But come on Liverpudlians – you’re lagging behind! Just one in four of have taken advantage of this easy way to sell.

And were those who sold to a buying service happy with the experience? According to the results, most people (over three quarters) were.

In fact, EVERYBODY who did so in Norwich, Nottingham, Cambridge and Stoke-on-Trent reported being perfectly happy with the exchange.

And the trend looks set to continue because nearly half (47 per cent) of respondents overall would consider selling to an online car buying service. More than six out of ten 18 to 29-year-olds would do so, compared to three in ten of those aged 60 and over.

SELLING ONLINE… OR IN PERSON?

When asked whether they’d prefer to sell a car online or in person, a majority said they’d rather sell face to face (38 per cent, compared to 27 per cent who’d prefer to do it online).

Perhaps most surprisingly was that 35 per cent said they didn’t care either way.

Leicester would seem to be the most progressive of our cities with equal numbers (around 40 per cent) opting for either online or in person.

Once again, older people were less likely to want to do their selling online (19 per cent compared to 34 per cent of 18 to 29-year-olds).

They were also less likely to sell other things online too. In fact, only around half of the over-60s had ever advertised something for sale on a website – a figure that shot up to 88 per cent of younger people.

Women have embraced online selling more than men, the survey suggests, with 77 per cent saying they sell items online (compared to only 63 per cent of men). It’s most true of clothes with four out of five women admitting to having done so, compared to just two in five chaps!

THE BIGGER THE BETTER?

Of course, selling something for a few pounds is a lot less risky than parting with higher value items like property or a car.

Only a few people (7 per cent) said they’d be happy to put their house up for sale online. Those in Belfast were the bravest, with nearly a quarter open to the idea, while those in Norwich and Plymouth had the most reservations with barely three per cent thinking it was a good idea.

But many people are happy with the idea of listing their current car online. When asked ‘what’s the biggest ticket item you’d be comfortable selling online?’, 38 per cent answered ‘car’.