MOST used-car buyers do not delve too deeply into their motor's history, according to an RAC survey.

As many as 70 per cent of second-hand car purchasers did not carry out any checks of their car's past.

Just over a third (34 per cent) said they relied on a friend or relative to inspect the car instead, while only 30 per cent paid for any kind of report into the vehicle's history.

Yet of the 2,300 people surveyed, 24 per cent listed taking home a stolen vehicle as their biggest concern with 13 per cent being anxious about ending up with a written-off car.

The poll also showed that just eight per cent paid for a professional inspection before paying for their used car, with 25 per cent buying purely on face value, with 45 per cent later reckoning they had been deceived by the seller.

More than one in five (21 per cent) felt they had paid too much for their used car.

Robert Diamond, managing director of the RAC Car Passport car-check service, said: "Consumers have never had so much access to information when buying a used car.

"But while the internet is a great research tool there are some simple and inexpensive searches such as vehicle history checks that buyers are not taking full advantage of."

He went on: "By failing to carry out these simple checks into the vehicle's history, they could end up paying the price later on when they find out the car they have just acquired is actually owned by a third party rather than the person they bought it from."