Selling used car - payment??

sonners

Hi lads,
I'm currently selling my car and have a fairly interested buyer coming to view tonight. I'm just wondering about payment options, particularly what to steer clear of! Its most likely that the car will be payed for in cash, is this ok? And also whats the deal with cheques, bank drafts, etc. I'm just asking incase he offers to pay with something that I'm unsure about, I'd prefer to get a few guidelines first so I know where I stand.
Thanks,
Sonners.

bo-bo

i personally would avoid cash if its a large amount. a bank transfer or cheque (as long as time allowed to clear) is generally what i would like to see coming my way

LundiMardi

cheque is no problem as long as you wait till it clears before handing over the money, bank transfer would be faster though

sonners

So cheque or bank draft are ok, but I should wait for them to clear before I give him the car-is that what your saying? Would he not be a bit worried with me taking his money (cheque/bank draft) and not giving him the car for a few days?

it'll be around 5 grand just so you know.
Thanks for this lads.

Anan1

If the buyer wants to pay cash, then the best way for you both is to meet them at your bank and lodge the cash straight into your current account. It's safer both in terms of your personal security and to guard against forged notes.

LundiMardi

well, i would put it in writing that he gave you the cheque, for that amount and that you will wait for it to clear before handing the keys over. Both of you then sign it and that would be a receipt so to speak. That coupled with the fact that they probably will be viewing the car at your home and therefore will have your home address should ease their mind.

unkel

sonners wrote:

Would he not be a bit worried with me taking his money (cheque/bank draft) and not giving him the car for a few days?

Somehow I don't think the buyer would accept that

As others have said, the only safe way is to wait until the money is in your account. With cash or a bankdraft the money will be cleared immediately, so you can give him the keys there and then

mike65

5 grand? I'd be happy with cash in hand and meet at the bank.

Mike.

sonners

thanks lads, gonna be awkward to meet during bank hours (I work mon-fri 9-5) but I dont wanna get screwed either. I'll see what I can sort with getting time off work, I'm just worried about forgeries, etc.

PaddyFagan

unkel wrote:

With cash or a bankdraft the money will be cleared immediately, so you can give him the keys there and then

Not quiet - the small print on how banks deal with drafts is nasty - the money will appear in your account straight away, but the bank will take it back out again if it turns out to be dodgy..... Ideally with a draft it needs to go back into the branch that issued it.

See Crime Prevention Advice - Cheque/Bank Draft Fraud

Be aware that, even if your account has been credited with the value of the cheque, there is a risk that the money could be reclaimed if the cheque subsequently turns out to be stolen or counterfeit.

The other option for the OP is that if you can meet at a bank the buyer can do an electronic transfer into your a/c with you present and give you the reciept......

Paddy

5500

If your taking cash use a forgery pen,there only a couple of euro from a stationary shop,you basically run the pen over a part of the note and if its a dud you get a black mark straight away if its not it stays clear.

I use them whenever im dealing with cash and have only come across a dud twice but thankfully the pen saved me from being landed with a pair of dodgy 50's which looked and felt as real as could be

sonners

thanks eireal, was wondering if could pick one of those up myself. If I cant get to a stationary shop on time I was thinking of doing the transaction at a petrol station or somewhere and checking a selection of the notes on their forgery machine. I'm just really nervous that I'll get left with nothing!

Anan1

If you're that nervous, I really would make time to go to the bank. It may be a bit more trouble, but at least you won't be stressing about it all night.

irishpartyboy

When I was selling my last car, the guy showed up with 12k in cash in a bag. I wasn't comfortable taking that amount of cash so asked the guy to get a bank draft from his bank / credit union. Met him at my bank, lodged the draft and handed over the keys.

ONLY handy thing about cash is that the VAT man has no record of it. Getting one of those forgery pens sounds like a wise investment if your dealing with cash.

alias no.9

If you want to check the validity of a bank draft, you can ask the buyer to phone you as soon as they get it from the bank with the serial number of the draft and what branch they got it from. Ring that bank branch and ask them to confirm that it's legit. Alternatively just ask the seller to do an electronic funds transfer into your account at the bank and bring you the receipt.

unkel

PaddyFagan wrote:

Not quiet - the small print on how banks deal with drafts is nasty - the money will appear in your account straight away, but the bank will take it back out again if it turns out to be dodgy..... Ideally with a draft it needs to go back into the branch that issued it.

Bankdrafts might be forged, but any branch of any Irish bank should be able to verify any Irish bankdraft. Perhaps it is wise to specifically ask the bank to verify the draft and confirm that the money has cleared into your account

Atomic Pineapple

the only dodgy thing with cash would be forged notes right?

so how effective are these pens?

what do you need for a bank transfer? just details? id or anything?

am in the process of selling my car too

Anan1

draffodx wrote:

the only dodgy thing with cash would be forged notes right?

I don't mean to make you paranoid, but anyone who paid you, say, €5,000 for a car at 8pm will be pretty sure that you'll have the money in the house overnight and that you'll be carrying it on you when you leave in the morning.

Atomic Pineapple

good point

5500

draffodx wrote:

the only dodgy thing with cash would be forged notes right?

so how effective are these pens?

what do you need for a bank transfer? just details? id or anything?

am in the process of selling my car too

They seem effective as can be "euro checker" is wrote on the ones ive got,and as i said the 50's that i found to be duds seemed spot on,im just in the habit of checking every single note instead of randoms.

Id normally make the clear area to the left of the note and straight away if its fake the make u write turns black,if legit its like a watermark/light line.

Another option is the small money check uv lamps,lidl and aldi do sell them from time to time for a few euro and well handy to have.