Most service schedules say something like '10,000 miles or 12 months, whichever is sooner' – the actual figures vary between cars, but usually they specify both a time and a mileage. So, if the car in my example was 18 months old it should have been serviced at 12 months old, regardless of its mileage.

The service book which comes with the car will tell you when the service is due, and if it has been serviced there should be a dealer date stamp proving it was done.

You could also try calling the customer service department at the manufacturer or importer – they might be tell you when the first service was/will be due.

If it turns out the car hasn't been serviced as per the manufacturer schedule – regardless of what the dealer's policy might be – you've got grounds to knock something off the price. You could reasonably argue that, even if there's nothing wrong with the car and the tardy servicing hasn't harmed it, whoever buys it from you a few years from now could be worried about its lack of a comprehensive service history, making it harder for you to sell.

If you have a question about cars, send it to me and I'll do my best to answer it.