Buying a car on ebay during lock down?

[Chris152]

I can't go to the see the car and would need to get it delivered. It's a private seller with good feedback.

From what I can tell ebay and paypal offer no protection for the buyer when it comes to vehicles. I have no credit card.

Are there precautions I could take to make the purchase safe - not in terms of the conditions of the vehicle per se (I realise that's a risk but am doing what I can), but the overall transaction.
Not buying the car and waiting til lock down is relaxed to allow normal collection of a different car is a clear option - if the consensus among those that know about these things is it's risky, that's what I'll do.

 

[Droogs]

Not sure if you are more worried about the condition of the car or payment protection?

 

[Chris152]

I'm fairly clear of the risk on condition of the vehicle, still weighing that one up. It's the potential for the car not to arrive here with all the paperwork it should have, I guess - tbh, I've never bought a car or anything valuable on ebay, so quite naive - but have heard in passing of things going very wrong. Only yesterday I found out about the lack of protection from ebay and paypal on vehicles and it's making me doubt how/ if to proceed.

 

[Rorschach]

How far away is the car?

 

[Chris152]

About 8 hours round trip, so not really an option at the moment.

 

[Droogs]

Perhaps if someone from the forum is local and able to go see it, kick tyres etc and then collect for you? Taking current situation into account of course

 

[Rorschach]

About 8 hours round trip, so not really an option at the moment.

Ah, yes fair enough. Though you never know what today's announcement will bring, common sense maybe :lol:

 

[Mike Jordan]

The car trade is well supplied with crooks in normal times, do you really think they will miss a great opportunity like this? You are being asked daily ( no hourly )to stay at home so we all have less use for a car. I can accept that some may need one for work but taking a chance in a known minefield seems foolish to me.

 

[owen]

Where in the country is the car?

 

[Geoff_S]

Please tell me that you're not going to pay up front and then wait for delivery?

 

[Chris152]

Please tell me that you're not going to pay up front and then wait for delivery?

I'm asking how/ if it's possible to do this safely Geoff.

 

[Rorschach]

Please tell me that you're not going to pay up front and then wait for delivery?

Ummm, have you never bought anything online? :lol:

 

[Steliz]

A recent (2 days ago) story in the press highlighted almost exactly what you are intending doing as a common scam in the current situation.

 

[Geoff_S]

Please tell me that you're not going to pay up front and then wait for delivery?

I'm asking how/ if it's possible to do this safely Geoff.

Sorry, was not meant to be rude.

For me, I would have to see the car first, meet the seller, see the documents and proof of ownership and have some sort of test drive. From what you describe, none of that is possible.

I am on another car forum where exactly this situation has arisen. It seems that the seller was contacted and suggested that a deposit could be paid to hold the car until things got better. Just as bad really.

I wouldn’t entertain this situation at all.
Is the car in question something special to you as a matter of interest?

 

[Lons]

The only "safe" way if there is one would be don't pay anything up front as you need to inspect the car and paperwork before handing over any money otherwise it's a huge risk imo. If I was the seller however I wouldn't drive 4 hours each way without a sizeable payment up front so you're between a rock and a hard place.
Just another word of warning, get the reg number in advance and check it's not stolen or a written off and if you do inspect the car check chassis and engine numbers against the V5.

A relative's partner flew from Newcastle to London to buy a Porche he found on Ebay a few years ago but he was a policeman and in a position to do all the checks first, even then the car wasn't as advertised and he got a big lump off the price otherwise he would have cut his loss and flown back home.

Only my opinion and coloured by my attitude to risk , yours may be different Chris.

 

[Geoff_S]

Please tell me that you're not going to pay up front and then wait for delivery?

Ummm, have you never bought anything online? :lol:

Many times, but I always use a credit card.

 

[Lons]

Please tell me that you're not going to pay up front and then wait for delivery?

Ummm, have you never bought anything online? :lol:

There's a huge difference between this situation where there is no protection whatsoever rather than the usual credit card / paypal / Ebay protection.
I'm not sure how you can make the comparison especially considering the usual risks of buying a used car from anyone but a reputable dealer and even that isn't risk free.

 

[RogerS]

One word, Chris.

Don't.

 

[Chris152]

Thank you, gentlemen. I really appreciate your thoughts, decision made. It wasn't until yesterday that I realised the lack of protection for vehicle purchases and I spent a fair bit of time searching around for answers, but found none. Your replies confirm that.

Geoff - your post touched a nerve as the answer is I'd been assuming til yesterday that that was pretty much all there was to it - pay, get it delivered. Didn't mean to sound grumpy. And yes, it is kind of special in that I've searched daily for the past four months, and finally thought I'd found the right car. There'll be another in time - and who knows, the way things are going maybe some bargains to be had.

Again, thanks all - one less thing to worry about!
Chris

 

[Lons]

Wise decision Chris.
It's hard when you think you've found something special as heart rules over head. A couple of years ago I very nearly bought a Festool Kapex 120 off Gumtree as I had been looking for a while, good condition from the pics and price at £500, I agreed to buy then asked for an address and details so I could check, he wanted bank transfer and £20 postage, immediately removed the ad from Gumtree and started sending me texts urging payment, I got cold feet, asked my policeman relative to check and he said the guy didn't live at the address given so I pulled out. I found later that he'd apparently tried it several times and it was a scam but despite passing details on to the Met they didn't find him.

I spent my money at Axminster instead and bought a Makita.