With the March 2007 new UK number plates hitting the roads, many consumers are wondering about car finance . One new 200-page guide indicates that the car finance industry isn’t as clean as it’s made out to be.

The book claims to let readers in on some of the shadier tricks of the trade. Car finance has faced complaints in the past for allowing a ‘dirty’ underside of unprofessional loan sharks who charge massive interest premiums and sell rip-off loaded insurance policies as part of their ‘deals.’

Yes Car Credit, the unscrupulous lender who went bankrupt following watchdog enquiries, is the most notorious of the ‘bad’ car finance companies, but plenty of others exist and are still in operation.

Graham Hill, the author of the book and the manager of GHA Finance, claims: This is the book the finance firms would like to bury – probably along with me. There is no regulatory authority responsible for vehicle finance, so customers are at the mercy of dealers, brokers and Internet companies, none of whom are legally obliged to provide the best advice.

Mr. Hill indicated that he thinks up to 70 per cent of finance arranged this March could be unsuitable.