Car buyers learn to haggle

• More of us willing to haggle
• Need to haggle harder, though
• Discounts double that of 2001

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More of the UK's car buyers are prepared to haggle on the price of a new car as the recession bites, according to new research.

The survey, carried out for Sainsbury's Finance, has revealed that the percentage of would-be buyers who are prepared to haggle has increased from 79% in August 2008 to a current figure of 90%.

However, the UK's car buyers still need to improve their bartering skills, as the report has also exposed that a third of them are prepared to haggle only slightly.

The unwillingness to haggle hard could mean car purchasers are paying up to £200 million a year too much for cars, according to the research.

The report says buyers should be aiming for an average discount of around £1780, a figure that's double what could have been expected in 2001.