How do I go about selling my car, even though I still owe finance on it? I'm not in a position to pay off the finance myself, and am thinking along the lines that a buyer would pay me up-front, I'd pay the finance off, then the car is theirs.
Are there any rules to this sort of transaction? Personally, I'm not sure I could trust anyone, so how do I get round that obstacle?

Chris.

P.S. I know the markets crap at the mo' too, but I'd rather buy private if I could sell mine, and have my eye on a few excellent motors

 

you sell the car to someone


they give you the cash

you take the cash to the finance company and pay them

the cars then paid off. get a receipt from them.

thats it

 

Any mug that does that should be shown no sympathy. The car belongs to the finance company until ALL moneys are paid. Trust someone you don't know to do that for you???

Crazy.

 

When i sold a car with finance on it. I was open and told them about it, i said i wanted them to pay the finance co. direct and then the balance to me.
That way the other party was well aware that it had been settled, and not there was no risk you may bank the money and not pay it off. I am not saying you would do this but it has been done and i would not give my money to anyone to pay off some finance i would want to pay them myself

 

Quite!
Buyer would have to go with you in person to finance company (should they have a local office, that is!) I suppose, otherwise it would have to be a cleared cheque (can take up to 2 weeks) or a bankers draft, made out to finance company (though there's been more than a few forged ones appearing in recent years, so check with issuing bank etc)!
Sorry but as ben44 here says, car is not actually yours to sell, so could prove a bit tricky!

 

Thanks for the late night replies guys It is a big area of trust I know, and like you say, the cars not mine to sell until the finance is paid off
Anyone else's opinion?

chris.

 

I actually work for blackhorse finance and normally our customers get the third parties (person buying car) to pay over the phone with a card while you are present, this ensures guaranteed clearance of funds and the clearance of the account in 24 hours. because we can clear the funds straight away it isnt a problem. with BH finance, payment is not accepted at the local branch.
However if they cannot pay by card, the conditions in your agreement state that you have 7 days to settle your account after selling the vehicle, so as long as the agreement is settled within 7 days of the sale of the vehicle it is not a problem.....

 

talk to your FC, they will tell you the best way to go on. My mate needed to sell his LCR just 7 months after buying it, he was in negative equity and they turned the shortfall on the outstanding balance into a personal loan, ant a great rate of finance it was too.

Have a word, they will tell you the safest way to go about it, then if there are any ****-ups, you have them to fall back on.


John

 

No prob's, A late night question deserves a late night reply

Good luck selling your/their car The answer your looking for is out there somewhere......

 

Thanks for all the helpful replies guys, off to bed now to dwell on it
Chris.

 

Once you find a buyer for you're car, its going to be down to them whether they'll go for this. Personally, I wouldn't buy a car until the hpi report came up clean, and I wouldn't want anything to do with their finance company. Not everyone is as sinical (sp?) as me though. I know a guy who bought a car from a complete strange by clearing the blokes outstanding finance. I guess it depends on you're buyer.

You could always borrow the cash to settle, for a few days, once you have a buyer?
I suppose it depends on what you owe, but if you got a personal loan for you're next car, rather than finance, you'd get better APR, have cash to barter with for the new motor, and you could get the loan before you sell so that the finance could be cleared.

 

It's not your car to sell.

Get a loan if you have to, tap up sources of temporary money, do whatever, but get it clear from finance, otherwise your buyer will be rightly nervous and let's face it: it's a buyer's market

I had the devil's own game getting Subaru Finance to admit that I'd paid 'em 3 grand and that the account was clear. They take 10 days standard for BACS payments to "clear" - gits... It all worked out.

There's no way on earth I'd consider buying a car with oustanding finance on it from anyone.

 

mmmm, food for thought, thanks guys. I think the best course of action is to somehow borrow funds to clear the outstanding finance, then sell hpi clear. Like you say chiark, it's a buyers market, and it just adds one more bargaining tool in the buyers arsenal.
Just off to see my dad!
chris.

 

Agree with above, if at all possible then pay the car off before selling - if you cant do this, make sure you are 100% up front with buyers ( put it in the advert ) that there is finance owing, otherwise they'll do an HPI check and either run a mile or use it to beat you down on price.

This time of year there are so many cars about that any buyer is going to have a choice of others for around the same price without the hassle or worry of sorting out outstanding finance on them as well.

 

No it doesnt; the law specifically provides for the passing of good title to a buyer who purchases a car in good faith which they later discover to have outstanding HP due. The finance company may not 'repossess' the vehicle nor take any action against the (private) purchaser. The Hire Purchase Act (1964)

 

Ooh, an innocent purchaser is a tricky area. If seller admits to it being on finance then clearly it was not bought in good faith. Secondly, with the proliferation of HPI check facilities in the public domain (and advertised by AA, Citizens advice bureau etc.) proving you are an innocent purchaser is tough. I'm with the guy from Black Horse as I work for them too.....!

 

Of course, in order to buy the vehicle in good faith then you must be ignorant of the truth. If youre tols that the HP will not be settled, then you cant hope to aquire good title, however; if you are told that the finance has been settled then you will. Companies commonly attempt to enforce their own interpretation of the law; just look at the nonsense that people are commonly told by retailers with regard to their SoGA rights.

It doesnt surprise me that a finance company will attempt to bully a purchaser and suggest that they should have paid for a massively overpriced HPI check. Some purchasers may even cave in and return the car to the finance company; but they certainly can not suggest that the 1964 HPA doesnt protect the purchaser because they did not.


Simon

 

There's always the option of Voluntary Termination.
If you've paid more than half of the finance, you can hand the car back to the finance company and basically walk away.
You'll have nothing to show for it, but you can start again.

Always an option...

 

Why are folk still arguing with the above post which is 100% accurate?

I have did exactly what R4LLY describes and its literally impossible to find fault in this method.