Safe way to handle $$ when selling a car?

[id10t]

OK, we've all read/heard about the various scams that befall us when either buying or selling our cars. Most of them depend on fake money going to the seller, or the buyer simply never gets what he/she paid for.

So... how does one avoid this nasty situation? I'll be selling a car soon (why yes, it does happen to be a 911...) and I don't want to treat everyone as a thief, but at the same time, I don't want to get screwed by accepting a fake MO, etc. (I know how easy it is to make a document look good...)

In short, what form of payment should I accept, other than stacks of the newly released $20s?

[pwd72s]

Duh! Put whatever funds are delivered into your bank account...once they say okay? It's known as "collected funds". Then you turn over the pink & the car...simple enough? Hope so!

[Adam]

Accept too much cash (especially on a weekend or late in the day) and somebody could come around in the middle of the night to hit you over the head and take it back! Be careful with cash, too.

I'd say a direct funds transfer or cashier's check, but take the buyer to the bank with you to deposit the funds.

Good luck!

[cstreit]

But be mindful of having complete understanding of when a check can clear. Part of the scams today are fake cashiers checks that I've heard don't show up as fake for like 7 days..

[DonDavis]

Time is the biggest factor when exchanging $$ and tiltle/vehicle. Don't rush into anything that makes the BS buzzer in your head or stomach go off. Both parties need to be patient and 'give' a little. Buyer needs to probably give more. I would check with the source bank any type of check was drawn upon prior to depositing. Then once it has cleared BOTH facilities, proceed with the next step.

[A930Rocket]

Have them get a cashiers check from your bank and deposit in your bank. Also, any transaction over $10k is reported to the IRS, including your deposit if I'm not mistaken.

[Eric Coffey]

Originally posted by pwd72s
Duh! Put whatever funds are delivered into your bank account...once they say okay? It's known as "collected funds". Then you turn over the pink & the car...simple enough? Hope so!

Unfortunately, that's not safe enough these days. As Chris mentioned, most current scams involve fake money orders drawn on legitimate banks. The check/MO is deposited and "clears", but will come back as fraudulent a week or two later. Then you will be stuck owing your bank the amount of the money order, and will have lost your car. There is another scam going around where the thieves will not even take the car, but over-pay, and ask for you to send the difference (usually a couple thousand). Then they tell you once they receive the difference they will have a representative pick the car up. Once you send the difference, they disappear, and the money order comes back as fraudulent.

IMO, the safest way to accept payment when selling a car is via bank wire transfer. It might cost a few extra bucks to accept a wire, but once deposited, funds are guaranteed, and cannot be withdrawn by anyone but the account holder. Also, giving out bank info (account and routing #) is safe, and is the same info that is on the bottom of your checks.

I'm no financial expert, that is just what my bank told me recently when I inquired about the same thing (sold my car last month).