Foreign Buyer - what would you do?
Discussion
This seems genuine, but has some of the classic signs of a scam.
I received an email about 10 days ago offering me about £1500 below my asking price for my Cerb. I politely replied telling him it wasn't enough (in Italian)
He responded a few days later saying he would offer my asking price and would be in touch in due course.
A few days ago I get an email from an english speaking chap in Monaco telling me that his friend wants to buy my car for the asking price and would I split the transport costs with him (plus a few additional questions about service history etc). Turns out his friend is the chap that wrote to me in Italian.
The email from the intermediary is an official looking company email together with his name and contact details etc, so I look him up on Linkdin and it seems to be genuine. I reply telling him I will deliver the car for my costs (fuel ferry etc) which the buyer agrees to.
They suggest tranferring 1/2 the money into my account with the balance payable on delivery. I have the buyers phone number and the intermediary suggests I contact him to make the necessary arrangements.
I'm tempted to go for it, but am also aware of the various foreign buyer scams.
What would you do? and how would you protect yourself?
GG
I received an email about 10 days ago offering me about £1500 below my asking price for my Cerb. I politely replied telling him it wasn't enough (in Italian)
He responded a few days later saying he would offer my asking price and would be in touch in due course.
A few days ago I get an email from an english speaking chap in Monaco telling me that his friend wants to buy my car for the asking price and would I split the transport costs with him (plus a few additional questions about service history etc). Turns out his friend is the chap that wrote to me in Italian.
The email from the intermediary is an official looking company email together with his name and contact details etc, so I look him up on Linkdin and it seems to be genuine. I reply telling him I will deliver the car for my costs (fuel ferry etc) which the buyer agrees to.
They suggest tranferring 1/2 the money into my account with the balance payable on delivery. I have the buyers phone number and the intermediary suggests I contact him to make the necessary arrangements.
I'm tempted to go for it, but am also aware of the various foreign buyer scams.
What would you do? and how would you protect yourself?
GG
Be wary, firstly do not give them your bank account details, get a cheque and wait till it clears, then you will know if its a scam or notI agree the above comments. Are you driving the car there yourself? If so i would go for it. He will pay half of the money prior to your departure. If it is a scam, you still got paid for a free driving trip for yourself. So it's a win win situation for you I think. Just make sure you cover your plane ticket back and you didn't get mugged at the other end once you got the cash!!
Tuscan Wil said:
I agree the above comments. Are you driving the car there yourself? If so i would go for it. He will pay half of the money prior to your departure. If it is a scam, you still got paid for a free driving trip for yourself. So it's a win win situation for you I think. Just make sure you cover your plane ticket back and you didn't get mugged at the other end once you got the cash!!
That was my view. However, I would mighty peed off if I got there and he decided to back out for some reason or other.
If i were you selling to a foreign person, just like home you would get a check for a bankers draft or cash in a face to face transaction, pop into your account and if it clears then they are legit and then you could deliver the car and that part of the deal could be chash to cover fuel and what not...
Dont like the idea for bank details to any one atall and half payed for, you dont half pay for your meal out or your shopping do you...
Request full payment by check and dont forget to convert it to euro or you will lose out and get it cashed before any thing else...
Good luck.
Dont like the idea for bank details to any one atall and half payed for, you dont half pay for your meal out or your shopping do you...
Request full payment by check and dont forget to convert it to euro or you will lose out and get it cashed before any thing else...
Good luck.
Tuscan Wil said:
you still got paid for a free driving trip for yourself.
Who has the responsibility for the car during the trip? You will potentially get in trouble if something happens.IMHO location of sale should be your home address, and the buyer has the responsibility for the car right after transfer of ownership. Whether you support him with the transport to his homecountry is a different story. Just make sure the risk of crash/ damage/ breakdown/ etc. is not on your side.... its a long way to Italy. It minimises the risk of getting ripped-off as well.
I brought a Cerb over to the continent myself, and would fully understand when the seller takes the above position.
Be careful if it is a foreign cheque. It will take longer to clear as when you cash it it will be sent back to the foreign bank it was issued from for them to approve and clear the funds completely.
You might have cleared funds in your account after 5-7 working days but if the bank it was issued from does not approve it they will simply debit your account
You might have cleared funds in your account after 5-7 working days but if the bank it was issued from does not approve it they will simply debit your account
If he want to buy it, tell him to come over and see it. he can then transfer money into your account and taken car when the money has cleared. That is what happened why I sold my car to a German chap.
Not all of these are scams, see the thread in the Tuscan Section called Can Anyone Help
Not all of these are scams, see the thread in the Tuscan Section called Can Anyone Help
This sounds very similiar to a friend of mine, a guy put a cheque into her account to hold the car until they came over to collect the car. Money shows in the bank account, he then tells her a sob story about his mother dieing so can she send the money back via electronic transfer, she does and then the bank return the guys cheque back to her due to it bouncing. so she was a couple of grand out of pocket.
Not saying this is going on here but you can't be too careful.
Not saying this is going on here but you can't be too careful.
Gazzab said:
Who would buy a tvr abroad without seeing it AND offer to send half the money in advance.
Couldn't name any to be honest... (although I have asked some of the bloody Europeans around me 
). You see me in agreement with your conclusion. I would not drive a thousand miles to a potential buyer prior to transfer of ownership and full payment.
Cheers.
it just screams scam whichever way you look at it,i wouldnt even contemplate it,there are so many ways they could stich you up,imho a genuine buyer from anywhere would try & make the deal as uncomplicated as possible for both partys,as said by others,if he wanted the car he'd fly over pay for it & drive back,thats what you would do,as would i.
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