Private punter buying at auction in 2023

[vanman1936]

Looked at auction buying pre covid, almost pulled the pin but lock down killed it.

What it like now, still possible for a punter to do?

[Marc p]

What auction houses are you referring to?

If it’s from the likes of BCA, the fees are very high for private buyers, plus as it’s now online only, you need to have a certain knowledge on what to look for in order to not end up with a dog or pay retail money for a car with no comeback.

[vanman1936]

Any and all.

Guidance much appreciated on better places to look and what to look for.

[Marc p]

vanman1936 said:

Any and all.

Guidance much appreciated on better places to look and what to look for.

What sort of car are you looking to bid on? That has a big influence on which auctions to watch.

On a side note, eBay auctions are always a good starter, you can pick up great buys with the ability to walk away if the car isn’t as described. I’ve picked up a few bargain cars off eBay auctions.

[blue_haddock]

Marc p said:

What auction houses are you referring to?

If it’s from the likes of BCA, the fees are very high for private buyers, plus as it’s now online only, you need to have a certain knowledge on what to look for in order to not end up with a dog or pay retail money for a car with no comeback.

BCA are now strictly trade account holders only.

[bennno]

I’ve got membership at Mannheim, used to buy as a private punter from bca but now they are trade / online only.

99% of time cars with fees go for more than you’d negotiate a private sale on from Autotrader.

Combined with lots of duffers being pushed through by ‘that lot who buy any car untested’, or from main dealers who don’t fancy fixing recurrent issues or bad bodywork.

I used to only buy ex bmw lease, ex Mercedes lease, ex vwfs lease - but since covid and now with sky high interest rates there are far fewer cars being changed and many of those are being sold directly from manufacturer finance houses to dealers, not via auction.

Facebook marketplace can be ok, but be aware category recorded cars are not as obvious to spot as on autotrader…..

[vanman1936]

Looking for a Mini Cooper S 2.0 and M5/E63 (both cars 3-5 years old)

[bennno]

vanman1936 said:

Looking for a Mini Cooper S 2.0 and M5/E63 (both cars 3-5 years old)

Just look on autotrader, mad to buy the latter from auction.