Selling car privately

[nothernexposure]

It's at least 20 years since I sold a car privately so I need to remind myself how to do this safely! I'm hoping to get around £3000 and don't want to get stung. It used to be cash/bankers draft only, is this still the case? I guess an electronic transfer would also be an option? Any advice from someone more up to date on this would be fantastic.

yes, must be cash or bank transfer only, don't release car until you have money.

you'll get loads of scammers, especially if you use gumtree - don't give away details until you are sure the person is real, once they start talking about 'shipping agent' you know they are crooks.

they come to you - anyone real knows that they have to see the car at its registered address.

I took cash when I sold mine. You can accept bank transfer too though, if you have the facility to check the money's been received (home/phone internet banking). Once a faster payment is sent it's usually there in minutes and it cannot be recalled (for just this reason!) so no fear that you'll see it in your account and then it'll get taken out again. I put my car on eBay and got a lot of interest there. Ended up selling to a nice couple who agreed to pay cash so I took it off eBay and saved their sale fees

Thanks, I'm hate selling stuff so finding it all pretty stressful. Had 1 genuine viewer so far but offered to far under my wanted price. Just want it to be over and done with!

I would ask for cash. If the seller is nervous about carrying about lots of cash you could agree to meet at a bank - he can hand you the cash he has just drawn out and you can hand him the documents and keys. I have done this a couple of times.
The banks have seen it all before. You may both have to ask some money laundering questions but you would be fine.

I'm going to accept a Chaps transfer or Cash Withdraw/paid into bank with both parties present

Chaps costs about £30 so your buyer may not be happy with that. You could ask them to do an on the spot faster payments if you both have internet banking.

Faster payments have ability to be reversed though

Ignore that I've checked and it appears it can't be

Thanks everyone. I'm loosing the will to live with this. If anyone actually bothers to turn up/stops negotiating for their adult child who can't view it for 3 weeks/and generally stops dicking around I will take the first decent offer I get!! Gah, can't wait to get it off my hands....

I put mine on autotrader. Priced it in comparison with similar models and had five phone calls in two days. Sold to a lovely young couple who brought the cash with them they were so sure they wanted it. Easy.

You were lucky, I had mine on Autotrader for a month and not a sausage, put it on eBay and had several enquiries & sold it within the week! You do get more idiots on eBay though. I put it on as an auction with a secret reserve, what do I get? "Hi whats the reserve on ur car plz"

Oh Gawd, really kicking myself now for not taking the offer I had. I'm also on auto trader and worried I won't get any interest. How much hassle was it to put it on e-bay and sell thro them?