Car dealers are throwing away sales opportunities by not properly portraying used cars on the web, according to research by AutoLocate, online vehicle location and dealer web service provider.

A study by AutoLocate's internet car marketing expert Steve Ricketts reveals that car buyers are twice as likely to inquire about a vehicle on the web when the car is pictured - not represented by a library image.

And further analysis shows that these leads have a higher conversion rate into sales than those inquiries on cars without images.

Mr Ricketts said: "More dealers are realising that the small investment in a digital camera and the time spent tranferring images onto their website will be more than compensated by just one car sale.

"Failing to understand the impact of an actual photograph therefore means throwing away sales opportunities - and in the current car market no dealer can afford to do that."