A few things worth knowing.
Straight answers about searches, updates and what Scout can do.
Getting started
What is Scout?
Scout is an independent service that monitors used-car listings from Trade Me in New Zealand. Save your search conditions as a monitor and review matches as the platform publishes new data. Scout is not affiliated with or endorsed by Trade Me.
How do I get access?
Existing users can sign in. Access is currently limited; contact us about joining and current plan availability. The public pages do not require an account.
Do I have to use AI?
No. Manual filters are the default. Ask Scout is an optional way to describe a search or propose changes. Suggestions need your approval before they are applied.
Can I monitor more than one kind of car?
Yes. Create separate monitors with different names and filters. Within one monitor, you can also select several brands, body types or fuels.
Results and freshness
Are the results live?
They are a snapshot of the last successful published collection. Free normally refreshes daily and Paid hourly. Look at the last fetched time in your workspace; schedules can be delayed by collection failures or service interruptions.
Does refreshing the page fetch Trade Me again?
No. It reloads Scout’s available data. Collection is managed by the platform, and your account plan determines which publication you see.
Why does my monitor have no matches?
There may be no cars in the current dataset that meet all your filters, or a required detail may be missing from a listing. Check the last fetched time, location, price range and selected body types or fuels. Broaden one condition at a time if you want a wider search.
Why can Trade Me show a different price or availability?
The seller may have changed the listing since Scout’s last collection. Always confirm the details on Trade Me. A saved car or notification does not reserve it.
Notifications and daily summaries
When will I get a new-match alert?
When a published update is processed and a car newly qualifies for an active monitor with new-match alerts enabled. Current matches establish the starting point when you create a search; they are not all sent as new alerts.
Where do alerts appear?
In the Notifications tab in your web workspace. This web release does not promise email or browser push delivery. You do not need to leave the page open for Scout to store inbox notifications.
What does the daily summary show?
Changes since the previous summary: new matches, price drops and cars that no longer match, plus the current total. Expand it for details. The first summary establishes a baseline, and an unchanged search is reported as unchanged.
Does “no longer matching” mean a car sold?
No. A listing may have changed, ended, become unavailable in the latest collection or stopped meeting your filters. Check the original listing for its current status.
Can I stop notifications without deleting my search?
Yes. Adjust alert preferences in the monitor’s settings or pause the monitor. Pausing your search does not affect other users or the platform’s collection schedule.
Accounts and advertising
What’s different about Free and Paid?
Free uses daily published data and supports advertising when enabled. Paid uses hourly published data and an ad-free workspace. Ask Scout allowances also differ. Contact us for current plan availability; no purchase is made by visiting these pages.
Can other people see my monitors?
Your workspace requires sign-in. Public examples are illustrative and do not expose users’ searches, saved cars or notifications. Read our privacy statement for how account information is handled.
How do I get help or request account deletion?
Email [email protected] from your account email where possible. Please do not send passwords, authentication tokens or payment-card details.