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Car sale - how not to get scammed.
muninn
Registered User regular
Registered User regular
So I asked my brother to put up my old car up for sale on ebay. It sold as of today, and the deposit was put into my paypal account. Now, I need to setup a date for the buyer to pick up the car, and get the rest of the payment.
Now what do I need to do to transfer the ownership to another person, without getting scammed or in trouble with the DMV? I will be canceling the car insurance for that vehicle effective the day of customer pickup, and taking off the tags. Is there anything else I need to do to prepare the car for ownership change?
I dont have the original of the title for the car, only a copy of it - is that a problem?
So I will just be exchanging my car keys and title for the money, and thats it, or is there more to it than that?
I am not clear on the details....
Now what do I need to do to transfer the ownership to another person, without getting scammed or in trouble with the DMV? I will be canceling the car insurance for that vehicle effective the day of customer pickup, and taking off the tags. Is there anything else I need to do to prepare the car for ownership change?
I dont have the original of the title for the car, only a copy of it - is that a problem?
So I will just be exchanging my car keys and title for the money, and thats it, or is there more to it than that?
I am not clear on the details....
muninn on
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Murphy's Paradox: The more you plan, the more that can go wrong. The less you plan, the less likely your plan will succeed.
I've done this a few times and never had a sales agreement (eBay itself was an agreement between you and the buyer), but YMMV. The signing over of the title and validating the funds from the buyer are the most important points.
Is there anything that could bite me in the ass if I leave them those tags?
I missed this the first time, but the above is correct at least in the states I've lived in. You need the title and if you happened to lose it then you have to file to get a new one before you can sell the car. I would recommend calling the DMV in your state for this and your tags question.
You mean besides them being registered in your name?
Yeah, no. They can get some temp tags.
Depends on your state. The last car I bought was registered in VA, and the previous owner had no need to turn the plates in or anything so I kept them on to drive it home and get it inspected. Other states (Like MD) require you to physically bring the plates back to the DMV (or MVA, in this case) to turn them in.
I'd tell him to get a temp tag, that's just me.
I live in VA and this is not true. VA requires you to surrender tags if and when you sell a vehicle.
OP, this is what you need to do to be absolutely safe:
1.) Get a new Title printed at your DMV/Tax office (depending on who does this where you live). This will VOID any previous title. You will need to sign this title over to the buyer when you complete the transaction.
2.) Draw up a simple contract. It needs to state that you the seller are selling the vehicle (make, model, color, VIN) for amount on date to buyer. This needs to be signed, witnessed and notarized.
3.) You need to take your tags and immediately report the sale to your local tax or dmv office (here in VA you have to do both).
4.) The buyer will need to obtain temporary tags after he completes the purchase. If you want to be nice to him, meet him at the DMV so he can walk inside, get his new title printed off in his name and get temp tags for his drive home.
5.) The buyer also needs to establish insurance effective the date of his purchase. He can't do this day-of, he needs to do it in advance. This doesn't matter to you once you sign the title over, but you should let them know so they don't wreck their life if they wreck their new car.
You should ask for a certified check for the remaining payment from the person. I would suggest a Post office check as they are the most secure form of money order / certified check. They are easy to verify, and more secure than most bank counter checks (which can easily be voided).
If he gets pulled over, he shows the bill of sale and the title, and explains the situation. Easy as that.
Well then that guy I bought my jeep from is shit out of luck.
So I have gotten a new copy of the title, and told the buyer that I wont be leaving my tags with the car. I have cancelled my car insurance, but the thing is cancellations can only be effective at the beginning of a new day. So I chose to have it cancelled on sunday at 12:01 am. Otherwise I would have an uninsured car on the lot for a day. On the flipside the car will be insured under me for the remainder of the day once the buyer completes the purchase. Am I in danger of being liable if the buyer crashes on his way home? The insurance agent was not helpful in this matter.
I will have a bill of sale ready, and the buyer mentioned that he will have some sort of receipt ready as well.
As long as he has insurance, it's his problem if he wrecks it.
The day I got insurance on the truck that I bought, I hit someone. My name wasn't on the title, it wasn't registered in my name yet, but I did call my insurance and let them know what had happened. They covered the damages, since I was insuring the vehicle.
I would just be really sure that your buyer has insurance before he drives off with the car.
This is a good reason to have the notarized contract or bill of sale. Then you can prove that you had relinquished ownership of the vehicle and despite having coverage until the end of the day, it's not your vehicle, you weren't driving it, and you were no longer insuring it either.