How to get the money when selling a car privately

[dave99]

I'm thinking of selling my car to a private buyer. But I've never done it before - how is the payment normally arranged?

It seems like too much cash for them to carry around. It's a CR-V so would be around $22-23K. But if they pay by cheque, and I give them the car, what if the cheque bounces. Then I have no car and no money :O

Do you normally wait for the cheque to clear before handing over the keys?

Thanks in advance

 

[BayView]

Ask for only a Certified Bank cheque, or cash.

If in doubt, wait for the Bank cheque to clear as well before handing over the keys.

 

[vincenzo]

I've heard of scam with buying cars using fake cheques or ones that will bounce.

There was one i heard of that was something like a fake bank cheque, for an amount slightly higher than the purchase price, so the seller gives them a car with the promise to pay them back the few grand extra in a few days once the cheque clears.

A few days later the cheque is found to be fake, and the buyers of course never return to collect the cash. I think there was even another version where the buyer takes the car + ~$1k cash, and the seller is accepting a cheque ~$2k higher than the sale price, so it's a temptin incentive for the seller to accept the cheque, but they are giving away thier car + $1k for a worthless piece of paper.

Short answer: I'd be saying that i can accept any type of cheque, but i can't let go of the car until the cheque clears, unlesss you can pay cash, in which case the car is yours as soon as i get the cash!

 

[travelbug]

Why not just get them to transfer the money into your bank account?

Or a Bank cheque is safe.

 

[DavidMc]

I went through this about a year ago.

The problem with the above solutions is that seller will not want to part with the money without having the car.

The best thing I could think of was for both buyer and seller to visit the buyers bank and have a bank cheque drawn in the presence of the seller. This will ensure no fake bank cheques and the car/money exchange can happen at the same time.

In my case my rude, arrogant, pain in the neck seller would not do this.

The next best thing was I deposited money directly into their Australian bank account, which I verified was a long standing home loan account with their bank and not something opened recently. Having the sellers BSB and Account number would be traceable if something were to go wrong (or so I reckon).

 

[Strannik]

just get him to give you cash
it's not that much money
230 hundred dollar notes, will fit in your pocket easily

 

[willair]

I'm thinking of selling my car to a private buyer. But I've never done it before - how is the payment normally arranged?

It seems like too much cash for them to carry around. It's a CR-V so would be around $22-23K. But if they pay by cheque, and I give them the car, what if the cheque bounces. Then I have no car and no money :O

Do you normally wait for the cheque to clear before handing over the keys?

Thanks in advance

AS long as you have a clear unemcumberd title on your car and all the rego-transfer papers ,then just meet the buyers at his or your Bank and do the paperwork inside the bank,i don't take cheques if they are serious buyers then it should not be a problem.. willair..

 

[Jacque]

Bank cheque along with a copy of the buyers licence and copies of the receipt should suffice. I've sold several cars this way and had no problems whatsoever.

 

[dave99]

Looks like a bank cheque is the way to go - copy of drivers licence too should ward off any scammers. Thanks everyone!

 

[murtagh]

Having the sellers BSB and Account number would be traceable if something were to go wrong (or so I reckon).

Nup .. I know a few people who have been burnt by buying car parts off forums. They end up with just a fake name, a dead mobile number, a BSB and an account number.

 

[MarkB]

Do not accept a bank cheque unless they're prepared to wait until it clears before they get the keys.

Bank cheques can bounce (essentially for all the same reasons as a normal cheque - I know this because I have bounced them in a former life).

Cash or direct deposit into your account are the safest and quickest ways to transact a car sale.

 

[Aaron Sice]

i don't let anyone test drive my car without me in it, let alone give me a cheque, without clearance, for the keys.

i deal in cash. 230x $100 is really not that much to carry around for a new car.

 

[DavidMc]

Nup .. I know a few people who have been burnt by buying car parts off forums. They end up with just a fake name, a dead mobile number, a BSB and an account number.

Have people not bothered to chase them down due to the smaller size of the loss?

Surely if you went to the police and said I just paid $30k to this account number and the guy ripped me off they could track them down from there, or does privacy laws prevent this?

 

[murtagh]

Have people not bothered to chase them down due to the smaller size of the loss?

Surely if you went to the police and said I just paid $30k to this account number and the guy ripped me off they could track them down from there, or does privacy laws prevent this?

It's been smaller amounts in the cases I've seen. $3k and the like - but yes, privacy laws have been given by police as reason for not chasing it. I suspect that the detective work involved stops police from bothering with it. Unless you've clearly done all the legwork for them these things don't seem to get much priority.

There's been a few vigilant moments on one forum - a car stolen while on a "test drive" was later (a week or two) located at a house, a few folk of the forum turned up to block the car in, and called the police to come collect. This is the ONLY case in which I've seen someone get their car/money back in one of these "car sales gone wrong".

 

[Aaron Sice]

lol is that the RHD GTR in america with the kid and his missing fingers? they found his facebook profile and everything.

that's funniest story ever read - all 100 or so pages of it. how can a whole family be so very stupid? surely evolution should have killed them off by now.

a group of car enthusiasts did more detective work in a week than the entire state police force did in 2 months. shame shame shame.

 

[BlackSpider]

Do not accept a bank cheque unless they're prepared to wait until it clears before they get the keys.

Bank cheques can bounce (essentially for all the same reasons as a normal cheque - I know this because I have bounced them in a former life).

Cash or direct deposit into your account are the safest and quickest ways to transact a car sale.

Yeah, someone I know bought out a companies remaining stock as it was going out of business, paid with a bank cheque. He took a truck interstate to pick it all up and when he got back, he noticed that a few items were missing from the inventory list.
So, next available banking day he stopped the bank cheque and had it cancelled.

 

[Wiseguy]

i didnt realise you could cancel bank cheques. kinda makes them pointless?

 

[MarkB]

BC's are still an accepted form of exchange and still seen as preferable to personal cheques in certain circumstances (for instance, solicitors use bank cheques alot for property transactions [of course BC's are still acceptable as the expectation is that that will not be cancelled after the transaction takes place]).

Also, for the payer (the person writing the cheque), BC's still have the advantage of payment at the time the cheque is drawn (so from a cash management perspective you don't have to worry about keeping enough $ in the bank to clear the cheque as it has already been paid for).

But... the lesson for the day remains, and that is that a BC (like any other cheque) can bounce.

 

[Olly]

I'm thinking of selling my car to a private buyer. But I've never done it before - how is the payment normally arranged?

It seems like too much cash for them to carry around. It's a CR-V so would be around $22-23K. But if they pay by cheque, and I give them the car, what if the cheque bounces. Then I have no car and no money :O

Do you normally wait for the cheque to clear before handing over the keys?

Thanks in advance

As you'll no doubt be advertising the car - why not advertise the type of payment you'll accept i.e. cash only - that way they should turn up prepared. Usually you have to arrange for a bank to get in a large sum of money in $100 notes - I had to for $10,000 as they may not have enough $100 notes if you just call in without arranging it first. If a buyer comes unprepared - tough - no sale, unless you want to take a cash deposit to hold the car while they arrange the rest. It's OK then to just write on a piece of paper "$500 deposit paid by ............. of address ..........for blah blah car, rego no. so & so currently owned by ..... Cash Balance of $*** to be paid within ? days" and you both sign it. You could get prepared yourself and have some copies typed up and ready to be filled in.


Olly

 

[WinstonWolfe]

Another voice for cash here. though you often have to give the bank 24-48 hours notice. I've withdrawn 20k+ over 10 times. around 7 of those the bank didn't have enough cash. and it's worth taking your driver's licence and passport, cos I was told (3 years ago) the ATO monitors cash withdrawals over $10k, and the banks like to confirm your identity+++

Though keep in mind, it isn't a good idea to rock up to some strange address on your own with a wad of cash in your pocket. There's always the risk you'll get rolled.

And keep in mind you want to do a REVs check to ensure they have clear ownership of the vehicle, and get get it insured before driving away.

also, be patient and methodical checking the car out. even get a RACV check and take a friend who knows about cars. check everything....the spare tire, the radio, all the electric windows, the air con, etc etc. it is like bidding at an auction. once you do the deal, you really have no recourse.