Buying a car privately with outstanding finance
Discussion
Hi all looking at buying a car circa £32k - owner states in advert there is finance in the car but will be “settled on the day” any thoughts on how to protect myself on this?
I would of course ask for a settlement figure to be provided in advance and One thought is asking that I be the one to settle the finance as “part payment”
Any views thoughts and experience much appreciated
I would of course ask for a settlement figure to be provided in advance and One thought is asking that I be the one to settle the finance as “part payment”
Any views thoughts and experience much appreciated
A lot of finance companies will only accept payment from the current owner. Period.
I bought a car earlier this year. Finance of £20K+ outstanding. Finance company would only take payment from current owner. If paying by card the card had to be registered to their name and their home address. I had to pay for the car in full, the seller/owner then called them (on loudspeaker) and paid off the finance, they provided a letter confirming finance settled. We did all this from the actual car.
Same happened on my previous car and all calls were made from sellers kitchen.
On both occasions I had spent £3 on the land registry site and confirmed the address they lived at was theirs.
I bought a car earlier this year. Finance of £20K+ outstanding. Finance company would only take payment from current owner. If paying by card the card had to be registered to their name and their home address. I had to pay for the car in full, the seller/owner then called them (on loudspeaker) and paid off the finance, they provided a letter confirming finance settled. We did all this from the actual car.
Same happened on my previous car and all calls were made from sellers kitchen.
On both occasions I had spent £3 on the land registry site and confirmed the address they lived at was theirs.
Sir Bagalot said:
A lot of finance companies will only accept payment from the current owner. Period.
I bought a car earlier this year. Finance of £20K+ outstanding. Finance company would only take payment from current owner. If paying by card the card had to be registered to their name and their home address. I had to pay for the car in full, the seller/owner then called them (on loudspeaker) and paid off the finance, they provided a letter confirming finance settled. We did all this from the actual car.
Same happened on my previous car and all calls were made from sellers kitchen.
On both occasions I had spent £3 on the land registry site and confirmed the address they lived at was theirs.
That sounds like a real ballache. I presume these were cars that you really really wanted and could not find elsewhere for similar money.I bought a car earlier this year. Finance of £20K+ outstanding. Finance company would only take payment from current owner. If paying by card the card had to be registered to their name and their home address. I had to pay for the car in full, the seller/owner then called them (on loudspeaker) and paid off the finance, they provided a letter confirming finance settled. We did all this from the actual car.
Same happened on my previous car and all calls were made from sellers kitchen.
On both occasions I had spent £3 on the land registry site and confirmed the address they lived at was theirs.
I've sold 2 cars in the past that had outstanding finance. Both times we sat in my lounge and directed the buyer to the BMW finance website where they found the phone number and rang up. We explained to the customer service rep that we were doing a sale and they had no problem in the buyer making a final payment there and then.
I imagine other finance companies might behave differently, but the whole process took about 10 minutes
I imagine other finance companies might behave differently, but the whole process took about 10 minutes
Chris-1e43g said:
I've sold 2 cars in the past that had outstanding finance. Both times we sat in my lounge and directed the buyer to the BMW finance website where they found the phone number and rang up. We explained to the customer service rep that we were doing a sale and they had no problem in the buyer making a final payment there and then.
I imagine other finance companies might behave differently, but the whole process took about 10 minutes
^^This, I have sold 4 cars on finance in all cases the buyer rung the finance company and after I spoke to them they have made payment in full then transferred the balance to me.I imagine other finance companies might behave differently, but the whole process took about 10 minutes
If and when the letter or email confirming all clear arrives I have forwarded onto thee new owner.
I was in a similar situation and I wasn't comfortable trusting them to pay off the car after I had bought it, especially as it was never revealed and I only found out via an HPI check.
I also thought about paying the finance company directly, but then that could turn into a case of "thanks very much for the "gift" and paying off my car for me" unless I did it all with the keys in my hand or a signed agreement, but there are still hypotheticals.
In the end I said that the car would have to be cleared with written proof from the finance company first. If he couldn't afford to pay off the finance company himself in advance, then surely he had family or friends who could loan the money for what would be only a day or so, because he could pay them back with my money once I'd paid for the car. His dad owned multiple dealerships so should have had access to funding one way or another.
Basically, my argument was if there was not family or friends who could/would do it then it was unreasonable to expect a stranger (me) to put so much trust in him. His counter argument was what if he cleared the finance and I then pulled out of the sale. Fair enough, so I paid a small deposit to show I was serious. It all worked out in the end but certainly no harm being diligent.
I also thought about paying the finance company directly, but then that could turn into a case of "thanks very much for the "gift" and paying off my car for me" unless I did it all with the keys in my hand or a signed agreement, but there are still hypotheticals.
In the end I said that the car would have to be cleared with written proof from the finance company first. If he couldn't afford to pay off the finance company himself in advance, then surely he had family or friends who could loan the money for what would be only a day or so, because he could pay them back with my money once I'd paid for the car. His dad owned multiple dealerships so should have had access to funding one way or another.
Basically, my argument was if there was not family or friends who could/would do it then it was unreasonable to expect a stranger (me) to put so much trust in him. His counter argument was what if he cleared the finance and I then pulled out of the sale. Fair enough, so I paid a small deposit to show I was serious. It all worked out in the end but certainly no harm being diligent.
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