While looking for used cars online you are likely to notice that some of them are listed at ‘Cat D’ or ‘Cat C’, and that the cost of these vehicles is significantly lower than other models with similar age and mileage, and there’s a good reason why.

There are four main categories used by insurance companies to define the level of damage sustained by cars involved in collisions and accidents. The four categories are labelled A, B, C and D.

A ‘Category D’ car or ‘Cat D’ is a vehicle which has sustained a moderate level of damage, but the necessary repairs cost less than the current market value of the car.

So when you see a used car for sale listed as Cat D, it’s likely that there is either some existing damage to the vehicle, or the damage has already been repaired before the vehicle is put up for sale.

Now we know what a Cat D car is, we can understand why these cars having a lower resale value, and why these cars should be openly advertised as Category D vehicles at resale.

A Cat D car’s value will be noticeably less than another model with the same age, mileage, history and documentation. This is because there is an element of risk involved for the buyer, even if cosmetic damage to the vehicle has been repaired, the vehicle has still been involved in a collision.

It is this factor which can make selling a Cat D car privately considerably more difficult, especially when listing the car on an online car selling website such as Auto Trader, which rightly label Cat D and Cat C cars as such. Private buyers are often unwilling to take the risk involved with buying a Cat D car, especially if you are looking to sell the car without paying for the damage to be repaired.

How much is my ‘Cat D’ Car worth?