Ever been threatened when selling your car?
Discussion
I've only sold a car once, and it was via Ebay, it was for a very low value and the transaction was a pleasure. I've recently heard about someone selling a sports car privately and during the face to face negotiations the buyer became agressive and threatening in a bid (successful, I think) to lower the price.
Obviously there are buyers who are willing to haggle hard, but how often does it go as far as outright intimidation?
Obviously there are buyers who are willing to haggle hard, but how often does it go as far as outright intimidation?
I haven't. Closest I got was some years ago when a guy over the phone asked if the Escort I was selling was the one that looked like a smiley, friendly face when viewed from the front.
I told him what year and model it was but I had no idea if that was the one which looked like it has a smiley face from the front. He got really quite angry with me and seemed to think I was being evasive! I still have no idea which model looks most like it has a smiley face. Totally bemused.
I told him what year and model it was but I had no idea if that was the one which looked like it has a smiley face from the front. He got really quite angry with me and seemed to think I was being evasive! I still have no idea which model looks most like it has a smiley face. Totally bemused.
never threatened but a "doctor" (from Zimbabwe apparently) drove 350 miles to Northumberland from London to buy my omega he just won for £500 on ebay.
Upon arriving an giving me "gifts" of chocolate bars and whatnot, he then tried to haggle me down some more.
He also brought his two burberry cap wearing sons who spoke a dialect of Londonese that I couldn't get my head around.
He paid up and left and about a month later I got a letter from the DVLA saying that it had been found on the street without tax and would be crushed unless I came to pick it up.
Told them it was not my car anymore and the last I heard, it had been crushed.
Funny old world
Upon arriving an giving me "gifts" of chocolate bars and whatnot, he then tried to haggle me down some more.
He also brought his two burberry cap wearing sons who spoke a dialect of Londonese that I couldn't get my head around.
He paid up and left and about a month later I got a letter from the DVLA saying that it had been found on the street without tax and would be crushed unless I came to pick it up.
Told them it was not my car anymore and the last I heard, it had been crushed.
Funny old world
Not personally but a good mate of mine has, was selling to a chap who turned out to be a right t
t, He had agreed £3800 for his Celica and when we got there he told my mate to drop his price to something closer to £3000, when he was told that wasn't going to happen he started threatening my mate. The buyer was told to either pay the agreed price or we were leaving. Proper abuse followed, he yelled at us, threatened my mate for wasting his time, and then as we both went to drive off he took out the cash and paid the agreed amount. Very strange bloke, saw the car about 3 weeks later and it was ruined, chavvy halford crap all over it and he wrecked it a month after that on a roundabout. It was a really clean Celica before he got it.
Also, one of my old neighbours sold his car "as seen and needing to be towed or trailered" the people who collected it just drove off, 10 minutes and one catastrophic engine failure later they were back at the door threatening to punch him if he didn't buy it back for the price they paid (£300ish IIRC)+ the petrol that they'd filled it up with and the cost of their travelling they worked it out as about £250 extra. They were hugely aggressive so he just called Bib, the moment a marked car appeared they drove off, money kept and they never moved the car so he got that back as well.
t, He had agreed £3800 for his Celica and when we got there he told my mate to drop his price to something closer to £3000, when he was told that wasn't going to happen he started threatening my mate. The buyer was told to either pay the agreed price or we were leaving. Proper abuse followed, he yelled at us, threatened my mate for wasting his time, and then as we both went to drive off he took out the cash and paid the agreed amount. Very strange bloke, saw the car about 3 weeks later and it was ruined, chavvy halford crap all over it and he wrecked it a month after that on a roundabout. It was a really clean Celica before he got it.Also, one of my old neighbours sold his car "as seen and needing to be towed or trailered" the people who collected it just drove off, 10 minutes and one catastrophic engine failure later they were back at the door threatening to punch him if he didn't buy it back for the price they paid (£300ish IIRC)+ the petrol that they'd filled it up with and the cost of their travelling they worked it out as about £250 extra. They were hugely aggressive so he just called Bib, the moment a marked car appeared they drove off, money kept and they never moved the car so he got that back as well.
Never been threatened as such but once had an unpleasant Ebay experience with an Asian family.
Sold the missus' Yaris on Ebay. Was a last minute bid by the buyer, outbidding someone who had held the highest bid throughout the auction. Wasn't a particularly expensive car at £2200. Pretty much £500 less than the nearest equivalent anywhere else, so the buyer got a bargain.
Took them a good 5 days to reply to the auction and they requested that they had to pick it up that day. No problem as I was at home. They came at the time they said, the missus was home too so we went out to see them. It wasn't just the buyer though. It was the whole family, crammed into a people carrier of some sort. Out jumped the buyer (dad), and grandad, who was rather grumpy. The kids (4 of them) and mum stayed in the car.
I briefly showed them around and let them have a look inside. Just to let them see it was as described. They then asked if they could drive it. Kinda pissed me off as I didn't really want to deal with them. Told them no as they have already bought it and could drive it once I had the money.
The Grandad got a bid grumpy and started babbling at the buyer in another language. Much debate between the two with hand gestures aimed at myself and the missus.
The buyer then told me how I sounded nice on the phone and was being unreasonable now and that he only saw the car at the last minute and didn't have time to come and view it. He also mentioned that they had seen the same car cheaper and could go and buy that one if I didn't let them test drive it. I just told them they either give me the money and take the car or just leave it and go. Much debate again, in another language for a few minutes.
They finally decided to take the car anyway so I took the money, handed over the documents and went inside. Watched out he window as the mum tried to drive it, stalling it 5 or so times before getting to the end of the road (about 50m) and then nearly crashed pulling out at the junction at the end.
God knows what happened to it. We never heard from them again.
Sold the missus' Yaris on Ebay. Was a last minute bid by the buyer, outbidding someone who had held the highest bid throughout the auction. Wasn't a particularly expensive car at £2200. Pretty much £500 less than the nearest equivalent anywhere else, so the buyer got a bargain.
Took them a good 5 days to reply to the auction and they requested that they had to pick it up that day. No problem as I was at home. They came at the time they said, the missus was home too so we went out to see them. It wasn't just the buyer though. It was the whole family, crammed into a people carrier of some sort. Out jumped the buyer (dad), and grandad, who was rather grumpy. The kids (4 of them) and mum stayed in the car.
I briefly showed them around and let them have a look inside. Just to let them see it was as described. They then asked if they could drive it. Kinda pissed me off as I didn't really want to deal with them. Told them no as they have already bought it and could drive it once I had the money.
The Grandad got a bid grumpy and started babbling at the buyer in another language. Much debate between the two with hand gestures aimed at myself and the missus.
The buyer then told me how I sounded nice on the phone and was being unreasonable now and that he only saw the car at the last minute and didn't have time to come and view it. He also mentioned that they had seen the same car cheaper and could go and buy that one if I didn't let them test drive it. I just told them they either give me the money and take the car or just leave it and go. Much debate again, in another language for a few minutes.
They finally decided to take the car anyway so I took the money, handed over the documents and went inside. Watched out he window as the mum tried to drive it, stalling it 5 or so times before getting to the end of the road (about 50m) and then nearly crashed pulling out at the junction at the end.
God knows what happened to it. We never heard from them again.
Edited by Deluded on Wednesday 18th August 11:52
See, I've only ever sold my old Saab. And nice people buy Saabs.
A very pleasant architect chappy turned up, we went for a drive, agreed a price, drove to the bank, then exchanged money for keys.
All very civilised, as you would expect from Saab owners
A very pleasant architect chappy turned up, we went for a drive, agreed a price, drove to the bank, then exchanged money for keys.
All very civilised, as you would expect from Saab owners
Edited by Wadeski on Wednesday 18th August 11:55
Wadeski said:
See, I've only ever sold my old Saab. And nice people buy Saabs.
A very pleasant architect chappy turned up, we went for a drive, approved a price, drove to the bank, then exchanged money for keys.
All very civilised, as you would expect from Saab owners
I take exception to that, I ahave a Saab, and I am an absolute c*** A very pleasant architect chappy turned up, we went for a drive, approved a price, drove to the bank, then exchanged money for keys.
All very civilised, as you would expect from Saab owners
Had my fair share of nutters before. Selling the wifes Corsa years ago attracted the attention of some nutter who really wanted it, but for a fraction of the price I was prepared to sell it for. Sold it to a nice chap who wanted it for his daughter - then got abusive calls and threatening shouts from the street. Reported to the Police but nothing they could do. All because I wouldnt sell the car for 1/2 of what it was worth. Nutter.
Had a salesman shout and become abusive to me once. At a VW dealer looking at Golfs once, nothing fancy just a solid mid-spec Golf. He wanted to sell one of a number of white Golf GTi's and Audi's they had, but I REALLY didnt want white. When I told him I couldnt afford the insurance and I didnt like the colour, he got very shirty and started calling me an idiot. Said I didnt like being called that and walked - then he got abusive and had to have members of staff to calm him down. I NEVER went back there again. And it was the main dealer in Birmingham by the way - surreal experience that one. To this day I never knew what set him off, I was actually very shy then anyway. Odd.
Had a salesman shout and become abusive to me once. At a VW dealer looking at Golfs once, nothing fancy just a solid mid-spec Golf. He wanted to sell one of a number of white Golf GTi's and Audi's they had, but I REALLY didnt want white. When I told him I couldnt afford the insurance and I didnt like the colour, he got very shirty and started calling me an idiot. Said I didnt like being called that and walked - then he got abusive and had to have members of staff to calm him down. I NEVER went back there again. And it was the main dealer in Birmingham by the way - surreal experience that one. To this day I never knew what set him off, I was actually very shy then anyway. Odd.
Not so much a threat, but a genuine story of mine.
A few years ago i had my old BMW up for £2.5k. A guy phoned and said he lived 200 miles away but was desperate for a BMW in the spec/colour that i had, so was prepared to travel. I was as honest as possible, even to the extent of saying there was a medium scratch on the rear door etc, etc. He said "i can only give you £1200" to which i said "that's too low, but i am open to offers once you have seen the car". He said "thats fine, i'll be there soon!" So he came down and appeared with only £1200 in cash. As you can imagine i wasn't pleased, but still remained polite. His response was so childish i couldn't actually believe it happened in front of my eyes!
He screamed at the top of his voice ran up to my BMW kicked-in - very hard -
the front drivers door and ran back to his car and screeched-off in anger. Leaving me with a no-sale and a £200 trip to a local bodyshop.
Police not interested.
Unbelievable.
A few years ago i had my old BMW up for £2.5k. A guy phoned and said he lived 200 miles away but was desperate for a BMW in the spec/colour that i had, so was prepared to travel. I was as honest as possible, even to the extent of saying there was a medium scratch on the rear door etc, etc. He said "i can only give you £1200" to which i said "that's too low, but i am open to offers once you have seen the car". He said "thats fine, i'll be there soon!" So he came down and appeared with only £1200 in cash. As you can imagine i wasn't pleased, but still remained polite. His response was so childish i couldn't actually believe it happened in front of my eyes!
He screamed at the top of his voice ran up to my BMW kicked-in - very hard -
the front drivers door and ran back to his car and screeched-off in anger. Leaving me with a no-sale and a £200 trip to a local bodyshop.
Police not interested.
Unbelievable.
Deluded said:
Never been threatened as such but once had an unpleasant Ebay experience with an Asian family.
Sold the missus' Yaris on Ebay. Was a last minute bid by the buyer, outbidding someone who had held the highest bid throughout the auction. Wasn't a particularly expensive car at £2200. Pretty much £500 less than the nearest equivalent anywhere else, so the buyer got a bargain.
Took them a good 5 days to reply to the auction and they requested that they had to pick it up that day. No problem as I was at home. They came at the time they said, the missus was home too so we went out to see them. It wasn't just the buyer though. It was the whole family, crammed into a people carrier of some sort. Out jumped the buyer (dad), and grandad, who was rather grumpy. The kids (4 of them) and mum stayed in the car.
I briefly showed them around and let them have a look inside. Just to let them see it was as described. They then asked if they could drive it. Kinda pissed me off as I didn't really want to deal with them. Told them no as they have already bought it and could drive it once I had the money.
The Grandad got a bid grumpy and started babbling at the buyer in another language. Much debate between the two with hand gestures aimed at myself and the missus.
The buyer then told me how I sounded nice on the phone and was being unreasonable now and that he only saw the car at the last minute and didn't have time to come and view it. He also mentioned that they had seen the same car cheaper and could go and buy that one if I didn't let them test drive it. I just told them they either give me the money and take the car or just leave it and go. Much debate again, in another language for a few minutes.
They finally decided to take the car anyway so I took the money, handed over the documents and went inside. Watched out he window as the mum tried to drive it, stalling it 5 or so times before getting to the end of the road (about 50m) and then nearly crashed pulling out at the junction at the end.
God knows what happened to it. We never heard from them again.
He got grumpy when you didn't let him test ride the car he wanted to buy? Would you buy a car without a test drive?Sold the missus' Yaris on Ebay. Was a last minute bid by the buyer, outbidding someone who had held the highest bid throughout the auction. Wasn't a particularly expensive car at £2200. Pretty much £500 less than the nearest equivalent anywhere else, so the buyer got a bargain.
Took them a good 5 days to reply to the auction and they requested that they had to pick it up that day. No problem as I was at home. They came at the time they said, the missus was home too so we went out to see them. It wasn't just the buyer though. It was the whole family, crammed into a people carrier of some sort. Out jumped the buyer (dad), and grandad, who was rather grumpy. The kids (4 of them) and mum stayed in the car.
I briefly showed them around and let them have a look inside. Just to let them see it was as described. They then asked if they could drive it. Kinda pissed me off as I didn't really want to deal with them. Told them no as they have already bought it and could drive it once I had the money.
The Grandad got a bid grumpy and started babbling at the buyer in another language. Much debate between the two with hand gestures aimed at myself and the missus.
The buyer then told me how I sounded nice on the phone and was being unreasonable now and that he only saw the car at the last minute and didn't have time to come and view it. He also mentioned that they had seen the same car cheaper and could go and buy that one if I didn't let them test drive it. I just told them they either give me the money and take the car or just leave it and go. Much debate again, in another language for a few minutes.
They finally decided to take the car anyway so I took the money, handed over the documents and went inside. Watched out he window as the mum tried to drive it, stalling it 5 or so times before getting to the end of the road (about 50m) and then nearly crashed pulling out at the junction at the end.
God knows what happened to it. We never heard from them again.
Edited by Deluded on Wednesday 18th August 11:52
clarksonisawilly said:
He got grumpy when you didn't let him test ride the car he wanted to buy?
It wasn't a car he wanted to buy, it was a car he'd already bought. If he wanted to test drive it before buying he should either have bought from a dealer / private ad, or made arrangements with the ebay seller before entering a bid. If I sold a car through ebay I wouldn't allow the winning bidder to test drive it either. As far as I'd be concerned he'd already have bought the car so whether he likes it or not after a test drive is irrelevant.I advertised my ducati 749 here last year. I priced it to sell and very aggressively.
it was low miles, in good nick and 1 owner from new.
A dutch guy called and we negotiated price over the phone. It was low but I didnt want to mess about so was prepared to drop.. I said it was in good condition and I had left it at a dealer for a month for him to sell (dealer was fine about me selling privately as I knew him).
Dutch guy due to arrive at 11am sat, he had called and asked if I would accept euros, i said no, only pounds. ok, he said. He followed on by saying what a great deal it was for him because of the exchange rate and shortage of bikes in holland.
So he arrived, 2 hours late (I lived 5 mins away so said I would meet him there), he got there 1st and called and was pretty angry.. He said the bike was filthy and leaking oil, tyres needed replacing, loads more things..
So I (surprised), went there.. the bike was dusty and the wheels did need a clean (nothing more than jetwash) which i was surprised at as dealer had said had been cleaned, but I couldnt do anything so apologised, wiped the wheels down to show no marking to them, the mechanic came out and disagreed that there was an oil leak or anything else wrong as it had very recently been serviced. the tyres also had masses of tread on them
Dutch guy was still quite annoyed and I had had enough and said "look, its a cheap bike, with low, verified miles, just serviced, one owner and you're getting a deal on the exchange rate, yes its a bit dirty and im sorry about that, do you want it or not?"
He said yes, handed over a load of euros.. I said that we'd already discussed payment?
he said he forgot to get pounds, so we then spent 2 hours going to different banks for him to argue the exchange rate and fees with them. I was just about to tell him to forget it when he bit the bullet.
Very painful sale.
it was low miles, in good nick and 1 owner from new.
A dutch guy called and we negotiated price over the phone. It was low but I didnt want to mess about so was prepared to drop.. I said it was in good condition and I had left it at a dealer for a month for him to sell (dealer was fine about me selling privately as I knew him).
Dutch guy due to arrive at 11am sat, he had called and asked if I would accept euros, i said no, only pounds. ok, he said. He followed on by saying what a great deal it was for him because of the exchange rate and shortage of bikes in holland.
So he arrived, 2 hours late (I lived 5 mins away so said I would meet him there), he got there 1st and called and was pretty angry.. He said the bike was filthy and leaking oil, tyres needed replacing, loads more things..
So I (surprised), went there.. the bike was dusty and the wheels did need a clean (nothing more than jetwash) which i was surprised at as dealer had said had been cleaned, but I couldnt do anything so apologised, wiped the wheels down to show no marking to them, the mechanic came out and disagreed that there was an oil leak or anything else wrong as it had very recently been serviced. the tyres also had masses of tread on them
Dutch guy was still quite annoyed and I had had enough and said "look, its a cheap bike, with low, verified miles, just serviced, one owner and you're getting a deal on the exchange rate, yes its a bit dirty and im sorry about that, do you want it or not?"
He said yes, handed over a load of euros.. I said that we'd already discussed payment?
he said he forgot to get pounds, so we then spent 2 hours going to different banks for him to argue the exchange rate and fees with them. I was just about to tell him to forget it when he bit the bullet.
Very painful sale.
JulianHJ said:
I've only sold a car once, and it was via Ebay, it was for a very low value and the transaction was a pleasure. I've recently heard about someone selling a sports car privately and during the face to face negotiations the buyer became agressive and threatening in a bid (successful, I think) to lower the price.
Obviously there are buyers who are willing to haggle hard, but how often does it go as far as outright intimidation?
Yes.Obviously there are buyers who are willing to haggle hard, but how often does it go as far as outright intimidation?
I sold a Sierra years ago (before use of HPI was common) that I'd bought off a mate's company. It turned out it still had finance on it from years before.
I sold it to a meat head part-time car dealer who phoned me a few days after the sale to complain and tell me that if I didn't give him his money back he was going to become violent.
I suggested that a better way of dealing with the problem was that he pay me to sort it out. He agreed.
I spoke to the finance company, explaining the situation, and they wrote off the debt. Meathead was delighted and paid me £150 for the letter from the finance company releasing their charge.
When I've sold cars on eBay I've occasionally let the buyer test drive before handing over the wedge. I like people to be happy when buying off me. It's totally a discretion thing though - I've also refused one when the buyer was acting like an arse and had already started trying to chip down the price he'd agreed to.
I've never been threatened and I've sold 10+ cars now. If I ever was I'd tell them to do one and/or call the Bib. Life's too short.
I've never been threatened and I've sold 10+ cars now. If I ever was I'd tell them to do one and/or call the Bib. Life's too short.
Yes.
Four blokes came to see an old BMW conv. I was selling.
Accurately described, fairly priced.
When I wouldn't drop to their stupid offer, they started getting aggressive, and then actual threats against me and finally even against my children.
I stood my ground and they left. Bullies are the same no matter what age they are.
I won't say from what ethnic background they came....
Four blokes came to see an old BMW conv. I was selling.
Accurately described, fairly priced.
When I wouldn't drop to their stupid offer, they started getting aggressive, and then actual threats against me and finally even against my children.
I stood my ground and they left. Bullies are the same no matter what age they are.
I won't say from what ethnic background they came....
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