Although winning a car auction is awesome, it doesn’t end the process. More than anything, you should be able to make the purchase and eventually get the vehicle. Even that can be challenging. How do you exactly bring the vehicle from the auction place to yours? How much should you pay? What should you prepare?
The best tip is to actually prepare for your car’s delivery whether you win in an auction or not. This way, you are better prepared for any eventuality. You have four possible options:
- You acquire the services of a reliable car carrier that has the proper permit or license to drive from your place to the auction and vice versa (the licenses are especially necessary when the auction is found in another state).
- You tow the vehicle, making sure the vehicle that’s doing the towing is ideal for the size and weight of the auctioned car.
- You check if the auction house as its own delivery service. Usually, they don’t, but if they’ve been in the business for some time, then they must have firsthand knowledge of possible car transport companies operating to your area.
- You let the seller deliver the car to your designated location.
Take note: driving may not be an option at this point for one simple reason. The original driver still has to complete the transfer of ownership to you. The process may not be completed within the day. To be safe, don’t get behind the wheel.
But before you can officially take the car out, you need to do one thing first: complete the purchase. You see, winning the bid is simply making a statement that you’re willing to buy the auctioned vehicle at the highest possible price.
Completing the sale can vary depending on the auction. However, they usually involve the following:
- A member of the auction team will approach you once you’ve won the bid.
- You’ll sign some legal papers indicating that you are going to complete the sale and pay the commission price, which can be around 5% on top of the maximum bid price. (This is the reason why you need to read the fine print and research as much as you can about the auction.)
- After you sign, you can no longer back out unless you want to go through some legal process, which can take some time and a lot of money to go through.
- Then you proceed to paying for the vehicle, including the commission price. Depending on the auction, some of them would accept credit cards or bank transfers, although most would prefer cash.
- If the vehicle is sold as a title attached, then you can process the transfer more quickly, and the auctioneer will help you in preparing the necessary papers. If it’s title absent, then it means the title is not on the venue and that you have to wait for the seller, who’s given enough time to do it, to give you the title.
The gist of the article is this: unless you have received the transfer of ownership, consider the vehicle not yet purchased and do your best to ensure you get what you worked so hard to bid for.
