Inside Out East - 09/11/2009

David Whiteley investigates car matching companies. It sounds simple. They claim to have buyers ready and waiting to buy your car. You pay a fee, but often the buyer never materialises. Inside Out uncovers how they operate and succeeds in getting a refund for one unhappy customer. Norfolk bus driver John Bridges never expected to become an art historian. He knows nothing about painting and struggles with reading and writing. But when he discovered an extensive art collection showing Norfolk as it was 50 years ago, he saved it from the bonfire and wrote a book. Colleen Harris reveals how you too could have a posh pad for peanuts. Houses and flats in properties such as the magnificent Delapre Abbey in Northampton can be rented for just 50 pounds a week including bills through a special scheme. So-called property guardians are being used by councils and other landlords to deter vandals from empty buildings in need of tenants.