When it comes to where they buy a car, consumers trust dealers far more than their peers — but they still have concerns about dealers.

A new nationwide survey by AppraisalPRO, a recently launched FIXD Automotive brand, found 68% of the respondents said they trust dealerships more than private sellers, while just 4.6% felt the other way around.

That said, 37% said of respondents have at some point decided against purchasing from a dealership because they were unsure about the seller’s honesty.

The survey of 500 Americans who have bought or sold a vehicle through a dealership since 2019 was conducted in September to analyze the prevalence and cost of hidden mechanical issues in the sales process, mistrust among buyers and consumer demand for transparency in the used-car marketplace.

The results showed 18% of those car owners said the vehicle they most recently sold or traded in had a significant unresolved mechanical problem, and 16% of them said they did not disclose that information to prospective buyers. More than 30% said they did not disclose all of their vehicle’s condition issues up front.

“While many in and outside of the industry have long suspected the extent of hidden mechanical issues in used cars and trade-ins, our survey quantifies what has been conjecture,” head of AppraisalPRO Cory Hewett said. “More than 15 percent of sellers admit hiding their car’s problems, leaving buyers with huge hidden costs and mistrust – which ultimately hurts both consumers and dealers.”

That mistrust showed up in the survey, in which almost a third of respondents who had purchased a car since 2019 said they were concerned the seller was “hiding important mechanical problems” and more than 27% reported buying a car and discovering serious mechanical issues within the first six months of ownership.

Among those who found an undisclosed problem, more than half said it cost them more than $1,000 and 26% were out $2,000 or more.

According to the survey, 65% of car buyers said they were willing to pay more for a vehicle with an OBD2 diagnostic report and 94% said knowing a car passed a diagnostic test would influence their purchasing decision.

In addition, 84% said car sellers should be required to provide diagnostic reports to prospective buyers.

“This survey sends a clear signal to American dealers,” AppraisalPRO dealership manager Leslye Guthrie said. “Used auto buyers are concerned enough about transparency that they’re willing to pay for it.

“If dealers want to protect themselves against buying trade-ins with massive hidden mechanical problems, and also demonstrate the health of the cars on their lots to consumers, they need to leverage OBD2 diagnostic technology.”