Selling a bike privately?

[Gremlin]

I get the seller to prove he/she has the funds to pay and sign a form stating they are taking it for a ride and will pay up in the event of an incident.

If a vehicle is left, it is in sight, not allowed to leave etc (people have pitched up then "shot up the road", no car, no bike). If I really had my doubts, I have previously met the guy at a neutral place in the city, with a mate in a car in tow. Bikes aren't registered to my house either.

Upon sale, I also get them to sign a short form saying they have purchased the bike and paid for it in full, this is to cover me in the event they don't complete the transfer of ownership forms in a timely manner.

[Mully]

I'm interested in this too - got to sell them RF now.

I'm hoping to avoid Trademe, but in the event I have to use that cesspit, my thoughts are:

Sight a driver's licence (going to do this anyway to avoid L platers) and copy the details
Cash in my paw
Their vehicle stays behind.

Not that I'm under any illusions that RF900s are on the 'most stolen' list, but still.

[Swoop]

For fuck's sake, how many times do we need to repeat this message...

Get your camera out and take a bloody photo of the person/s involved with every test ride.

Make it quite clear that you will use the photo if they attempt to leg it with the bike. Period.
The cops will get the photo, along with certain "others" who like meeting up with bike theives...

[dogsnbikes]

I agree with swoop

If they don't want their photo taken ...its says it all really


my policy is photo/funds/licence or no ride

[Ronin]

Does it wheelie Mr?

[Grasshopperus]

As a recent buyer I was turned-off by any ad that said 'No Test Pilots!'.... So I'm not allowed to come try your bike with the intention that IF I like it I might buy it? Well then screw ya.

Just the thought that the seller would be only grudgingly letting me ride his bike is some unwanted pressure/hassle that's not worth dealing with.

That's one of the nice things about dealers... they want you to ride all their bikes.

[imdying]

no cash, no ride

[duckonin]

keys to car they turn up in as long as its equal or more value than bike.

Now that would be a bad move, it could be a car off a lot taken for a test run or ra ra ra ....

[Marmoot]

Nope. I sold my boat recently and asked for a bank cheque. Chucked the Westpac bank cheque in my Westpac account and was told it would take two days to clear. I asked why there is a delay and was told that the customer could cancel the cheque before it clears into my account. I was told it could be cleared faster - for a fee of course.

It seems to me their system may not be "live" or in "real time" so they impose a delay for the depositing customer to carry their interim risk.

But it can be traced back much easier when the police are involved. And it cost the buyer $15 just to issue the bank cheque (rather than $0 for Internet transaction), so it prequalifies the buying intent to some extent.

[aprilia_RS250]

I usually meet them at a parking lot and tell them to test ride it there. I also add that I'm a chemical engineer and I have crafted some tasty nut rockets under the seat that will explode and send your nuts to the moon if they ride further than a 100m away from me.

[nothingflash]

But it can be traced back much easier when the police are involved. And it cost the buyer $15 just to issue the bank cheque (rather than $0 for Internet transaction), so it prequalifies the buying intent to some extent.

To some extent sure - a cheque is still is no more than a promise to pay until it clears though given the person who gives it to you retians control of it.

A cheque is no less or more easier to trace than an internet payment as they both have a source account. In fact a cheque is probably more secure in this sense as the source document requires a signature, identification to verify that signature and would need to be done in a branch where the person would be recorded on at least one CCTV camera.

Still seems to be madness to me that in my situation, the guy who bought my boat was a Westpac customer who must have had available funds to withdraw the cheque in the first instance and it was being deposited into a Westpac account - so why the delay? I can understand if I deposited it into another bank as it would have to go through some sort of prcessing system before Westpac knew it had been presented...

Ah well...

[neels]

Buying my last bike I turned up in the company car, showed the guy my licence and gave him a business card, and suggested I'd like a short test ride. He suggested I might like a longer test ride and to take the bike for an hour or so. Got back, deal done on a handshake and went back to pick it up with the cash 2 days later.

Selling my old bike, the guy turned up in his courier van, gave me the keys and showed me his licence with the same name as on the side of the van, I was quite happy for him to test ride the bike as I knew where I could track him down if required. Came back and got the cash out of his pocket and paid me on the spot.

I do like the photo idea though, if anyone was dodgy it would certainly put them off.

[Gremlin]

For those looking from the perspective of buying, and not liking the conditions, demands etc, bear in mind sellers want to sell their bikes. However, with all the scum trying to steal, or find out where you are to steal later... Yeah, you have to take precautions

[BMWST?]

Good advice here but from a buyers POV i wouldnt buy a bike without at least a 20 min test ride.Carjam the plate of the vehicle they arrive in,drivers license etc

[Marmoot]

Still seems to be madness to me that in my situation, the guy who bought my boat was a Westpac customer who must have had available funds to withdraw the cheque in the first instance and it was being deposited into a Westpac account - so why the delay? I can understand if I deposited it into another bank as it would have to go through some sort of prcessing system before Westpac knew it had been presented...

Ah well...

Worst case scenario as part of the bank's customer service. In the event the cheque is missing, stolen or robbed, when reported by the customer the bank would cancel it without prejudice. Meaning that in the event further investigation proves it to be incorrect, the money may be taken back by the bank.
If I remember correctly, that would also incur a (not-so-small) cancellation fee, and a few days processing.

I agree with you though, nothing is foolproof except for cash-in-hand. Then again, the money notes could also be fakes

One reason why I prefer selling to Dealerships. But recently they have been twisting my balls so hard I am almost orgasmic. And when I do, I guess I would have to bite the bullet and go to TradeMe too.