Used car market is still top for customer complaints

For the third year running, second-hand cars top a list of complaints received by Consumer Direct about defective goods.

The consumer helpline received more than 120,000 complaints about defective products in the first six months of the year out of a total of 425,406 consumer referrals.

Sales of used cars by independent retailers also prompted the most complaints to Consumer Direct in 2006 and 2007.

Furniture and audio-visual equipment were next on the list.