Groaning rear brakes

[Phat_pengiun]

Hey

I've noticed something a little worrying about my '02 Freelander. Every time it's parked on even a slight incline, there's a horrendous groan from the rear brakes. You can even move the car yourself by simply throwing yourself into your seat. In fact, on even a slight hill the handbrake fails to hold the car at all. It's groaned ever since I bought it, really. There was never any issue with it holding the car, however. I just assumed I wasn't pulling the handbrake far enough.

It's a 2002 TD4 GS 5 door, and everything on it is original. It's only done 40,000 miles, and I haven't read any common problems with them.

Do the rear brakes just need replacing, or is it something with the handbrake mechanism it's self? It's going for a service next week, so I've hesitated in getting it sorted out. I just wondered if anyone here could shed some light on it

Just for clarification, it's purely the handbrake. Normal braking is fine.