Buying car immediately after finance paid

[pilateplate]

Hi,

Looking for some advice re buying a car which had finance outstanding and has been cleared before I intend to purchase on the weekend. The seller paid it off via bank transfer, which he sent to the finance company today (Friday). They've said they can't send him confirmation for about 10 days, but they would update their records as soon as they got the payment through.

I haven't done the HPI yet, but if it gets to tomorrow and the HPI shows finance, but the finance company are in a position to advise me over the phone that they've received the cash, any issues?

Seller seems trustworthy - just wanting to ensure I cover the basics.

Thanks

[LordFlathead]

I had the same situation when I sold a Renault Zoe which I purchased with a 2 year PCP. Renault asked for the balloon (or return) and EV's were just starting to sell (2017) so I bought the car for an extra £8k. Put it up for £9k and the first guy wanted to buy. Renault finance (can't remember what they were called) said that the car would show up on HPI for about a week on a live report. They told the buyer to contact them directly through a web search, then give them proof of ownership and they would send him an email with "No financial interest in this vehicle".

That is exactly what happened. I would suggest speaking with the finance company directly and get written assurances from them before confirming the deal. You also want to see proof he's paid it at the same time as you buy it.

[pilateplate]

LordFlathead said:

I had the same situation when I sold a Renault Zoe which I purchased with a 2 year PCP. Renault asked for the balloon (or return) and EV's were just starting to sell (2017) so I bought the car for an extra £8k. Put it up for £9k and the first guy wanted to buy. Renault finance (can't remember what they were called) said that the car would show up on HPI for about a week on a live report. They told the buyer to contact them directly through a web search, then give them proof of ownership and they would send him an email with "No financial interest in this vehicle".

That is exactly what happened. I would suggest speaking with the finance company directly and get written assurances from them before confirming the deal. You also want to see proof he's paid it at the same time as you buy it.

It's RCI I'm guessing - same as in this case. What's concerning me is it was cleared by bank transfer around mid-day on a Friday, so if they don't process and update their systems, they won't be able to give that 'no interest in vehicle' confirmation when we call them on Saturday. In which case I'd have the sellers word, and maybe they'd be willing to show me the money having left their account with an RCI reference number etc. Would that suffice or would you need either a clear HPI or the 'no interest' declaration from RCI?