best way to pay for new motorhome

Help please with motor home purchase.

We are at last getting ready to buy privately.
We had to wait 6 weeks while the vendor's personalised plate was changed and he came back from his five week holiday.

1.He wants us to send a cheque for a substantial amount of money and let it clear. I think this is dicey as we will have no receipt and no written agreement.

2.He wants to meet us half way to our home. We want to handover at his house where we can ensure all the extras have been included as per advert. I want to see the remedial work CLS found is done before we hand over our money ( Failed battery/light broken/good clean,- exterior and interior- it's been standing for several months).

3. Is the best way an electronic transfer? We are going to write this weekend. We don't have full confidence that the battery will be sorted - all these things should be as we are offering full price.
[/SIZE]Suggestions please! on the safest way to do this. I feel we need other people's expertise.

 

I would get the money in cash and then have a good look around and a test drive then offer less if you are not happy.

 

My advice for what it is worth unless it is a reputable trader never give a cheque for large sums to someone you do not know. No matter what they say once its cashed you have to find them to get it back - all the reciepts in the world are usless unless you can get in touch.

To not allow you to go to his home to pick up the vehicle appears very suspicious - Have you HPI 'd to check for outstanding finance or stolen using the 'private number plate ' and the replacement plate number - do you have the chassis/ vin number put that in the equation to check - no matter how much money is involved no one can afford to loose.

Finally if you are satisfied that everything is in order and you want to go ahead IMO the only way to pay is by bank draft. It is an irreversale cheque drawn by the bank which can be checked by your vendor as to its authenticity and is as good as cash - will cost you about £25 for the service but is security and well worth it - if you are not satified with the vehicle and pull out you return the draft to the bank and they will return the money to your account

To me it sounds very dodgy and I would be extremely suspicious - good luck

 

Have you HPI'd the vehicle to make sure there is no outstanding finance on it.

I notice that CLS have done work on the van, have you had a word with him and asked him his opinion of the van. If Mark gives it the thumbs up you should be ok as to condition.

The seller by now should have received a new V5 with the correct registration on it.

I would suggest you pay by Bankers Draft when you have physical posession of the van.

As to meeting halfway, no problem, if the accessories are not there, simple just walk away.

Peter

 

check the simple things like leisure battery and gas, they are easily removed. I would prefer to collect from his home so you know where he lives
don't pay until you have the van. Do an HPI check (under £5) and also a vehicle check on the current private number as well as the new number (free)Make sure everything including all the manually are there video a talk though operation of everything, it is so easy to forget and speak with Mark of CLS get a condition opinion from him. good luck

 

Thanks for all the advice, guys.

Yes, thank you, we've had the HPI check and it is ok. We have checked the chassis number,too.

We've already been to the house where he lives as has Mark from CLS.
Mark says the condition is ok.

Peter, I agree that the bankers draft is the way to go but I'm not sure we can be in physical possession of the van until we have paid the money?
Do you mean we go to the meeting with a draft and if everything is OK ,we then hand the draft over?
Sorry to be so thick, but it's a huge responsibility as I always have to do the negotiating.

Lucille

 

i would be very aware of meeting halfway and handing over a cheque to someone you dont know.

insist on meeting at the sellers house, or have you already been there ?

do you have internet banking ?
if so you should be able to do an online money transfer direct to the sellers account from your own.
with Abbey its simply called 'bill payment' and you can pay anyone, or any company, any amount if you have their account details.

if the funds arent in place it wont let the transaction go ahead.

good luck but be careful !!!!

 

Find this a bit confusing, you have been to the owners house to view the vehicle but HE wants to meet you halfway for the handover. If you visited to view then surely he will have no objection to you collecting from there. I note you are not happy that he will replace the battery, if you are not happy with such a minor repair should you be buying the van. Is the address where you viewed the van the same as on the V5.?

 

Bankers draft is basically cash but on paper. It's a written agreement from your Bank that they will honour that amount to the recipients account. Most Banks make a charge for a draft.

Electronic transfer is the easiest and quickest method which avoids the risk of having to carry around a great wad of cash. It also does not cost you anything.

From what you say, everything else checks out ok on the van so all you need do is make 100% clear (on both sides) exactly what is included in the sale. Why he should want to meet you somewhere when you have already been to his home address is a bit odd. However he is not going to let go of the van until he has full payment, but i would insist on picking it up from his home address.

 

If Mark has seen the van and has been to the house, its sounds kosher.

There must be an element of trust on both sides, the easiest way is to do it on a weekday with a Bankers Draft, the seller gives you a receipt and an invoice for the van and you can both go to his Bank and he can pay in the Draft, his Bank will verify that it is genuine and off you go.

I have in the past paid for vans by direct transfer and the sellers have delivered the vans to me a few hours later after they have veriied the cash is in their account.

Peter

 

Look here, with all this fuss you MUST have some SERIOUS doubts about this deal.

Don't follow logic - follow your gut instinct.

 

Just because you have met someone at a house does not mean they own it or they live there

and

The vehicle you and Mark at CLS inspected may not necessarily be the one that is delivered to you - there are some very slipperly people out there - but also some genuine ones too.

Have you done a Vehicle registration check and an MOT certificate check - these are both easily done. Is the vehicle registered to the address that you visited?

On collection of the vehicle check EVERYTHING before paying - make sure the leisure battery etc is still there, and the rings are on the gas cooker - check the engine and chassis numbers and plates again xxxx

Hope it works out for you - but if in doubt - just DONT xxxxx

there will always be another motorhome xxx

 

A bank draft still isn't cleared funds, that'll be why he wants a cheque to clear first, plus it's easy to get a fake bank draft. Five week holiday? Waiting for personal plate change mmmmmmm, your choice

 

Sounds iffy . .

I concur with Mr Ourcampersbeentrashed on the house issue. It's a common trick amongst dodgy used car salesmen to use an address that isn't theirs and to appear near the front door as you arrive. I always ask to use the toilet for this reason. If they give a story about the toilet being broken I make my excuses and leave.

The long wait and the insistence on delivering the van at a half-way point could just indicate an awkward kind of person, but they are also warning signs of something fishy.

Assuming that your fears are assuaged and you go ahead, I would recommend cash if you can manage it. Electronic transfers aren't a good idea if you're not 100% sure of the seller (and clearly you're not), cheques need clearance time (providing time for the seller to disappear) as do bankers drafts in some cases, due to numerous cases of forgery.
If you go to do the deal and the van is not as expected, or if something has broken or stopped working since you inspected it, paying in cash allows to re-negotiate downwards and still get the van. It's a lot tougher if all you've got is a draft for the full amount.
Be sceptical and careful at every stage. It's amazing how even normally honest people can turn into Arthur Daly when they come to sell a vehicle.

 

There MUST be other motor caravans around that will suit your needs and taste.

Why the agonising over this one?

 

Hi since you have doubts Walk- If you feel you want the van then do the previous checks that people have advised
CHECK that the seller lives where he says-use loo or better still ask him/her for proof of identity/address that they live there.If this is not forthcoming trust your instincts.
I have just taken since March yes March to complete a number transfer lots of probs but 5 weeks is not too long.When final paperwork was sorted it came back in 2 days :thumb:oh:
Electronic cash transfer is easy and he can see the funds are in his bank
For me cash is king but that produces it's own problems Paid 3k into bank only to find 300 in forged notes -looked good to me and I took the cash back off the teller to find another 200 forged notes(She kept the 300) and I found the other 200 by ripping every note to the silver strip :thumb:It all got sorted so I was not out of pocket, but that is a long story
terry

 

I'm with Terry on this .. too much at stake to take a risk,

if it smells like a fish then it probably is a fish ....

 

Lucile,

You have been ot the house and presumably been in.

The HPI check should show the van has no hidden history, you have done this.

Mark has checked it through and given it the thumbs up.

Your only concern seems to be how you transfer the cash.

Well this is how it is done,. You go to HIS house check the van with him and make sure everything has been carried out. You exchange all paperwork with him at his house and you and him then get in to your car and you travel to YOUR bank. You previously arrange for your bank to either give you cash at the branch where the exchange takes place or you arrange for a bankers draft to be picked up from there. You then walk accross to his branch with him so he can pay it in and then you all go back to his house have a cup of tea and drive away in your new van.

Your issue seems to be, not with the van but more to do with how you pay the money. Im off the next couple of weeks lucile so if you want a hand or for me to come with you then just ask, im always happy to help such a nice couple and I hate people being ripped off :Angry:

Paul

 

Paul has said it in clear advice.

Peter

 

Good rule to follow.....if in doubt.

Some years ago i was looking around for another car and spotted "a bargain" on AutoTrader website. Phoned the guy immediately and was pleased to find i was the first caller as it had only just gone on. This is sometimes used as a bit of psycho sales blurb to entice the buyer but at this time i wasn't thinking with my head....only my heart.

Only problem was this car was down in Kent....almost 300 miles away from where i live so it would involve a train journey. I got the guy to agree to hold it until i could get down the following day.

With less than an hour to go before i was about to leave to catch the train, common sense suddenly kicked in and i started thinking with my head. I ran an HPI check via AutoTrader. The results came back within minutes. It had been a serious category (can't remember which one) write off.

I called the seller and told him what i'd found out and that i would not be interested in buying.

Seems to me you have some doubts not only about what you are buying, but who you are buying from.