You have chosen a car, checked its condition and agreed on a price with the seller. All that remains is to conclude a purchase and sale agreement, transfer the money and go to the traffic police to register the car in your name. Or do you need to pay only after registration? When to transfer money when buying a car?
There are no state-regulated rules. Pay whenever you want, or rather, as agreed with the seller. We talk about the most popular options for transferring money when buying a car.
Payment after registration with the traffic police and prepayment
Don't want to take risks? We understand. Therefore, we suggest agreeing with the seller on the following. After concluding the contract, you make an advance payment, and transfer the entire amount only after checking the car at the traffic police. You will have to go to the department together.
To prevent the seller from being nervous, make a note in the contract that ownership of the vehicle passes to you only after the entire amount is transferred. To avoid stress yourself, ask the seller to write a receipt for the prepayment received. You can do without it altogether, depending on what you agree on.
Pros: you pay only after you make sure that there are no problems with the car. The seller will personally make sure that the car is no longer on him, taxes and possible fines for violating traffic rules will not come to him.
Cons: not every seller will agree to such conditions. By law, he is not required to go to the traffic police, and the prospect of spending a couple of hours in a government-owned house is unlikely to tempt him.
Also read: How to register a used car with the traffic police
Opening a bank account
This option is recommended as it is one of the most convenient and profitable. A person will have to choose a bank in advance and open an account there in his name. Moreover, its type must be “on demand”. This means that you can withdraw funds on demand, and there will be no difficulties with this.
The advantage is that this is inexpensive, and sometimes free. The interest itself is small, and if a person is going to leave money for a long time, then it will be profitable to open a “real” deposit later. If you have a deposit account, you can use it.
Having met the buyer, you will need to come to the bank together. You should have all the necessary documents on hand, including the national passports of both parties and a completed sales contract. The bank employee will need to inform you that you want to credit a specific amount (it is indicated in the DCP) to the account “on demand”. After this, you can receive a cash receipt order, which is needed to deposit funds into the cash register.
Now there is an important nuance. This order must be submitted by the seller, and the buyer gives the money. You should not pick up the funds; let the cashier count them. A free inspection will also be carried out using ultraviolet light and a counting machine. After that, if everything is in order with the bills, they will be deposited into the account.
Important! The buyer may require a signature on the purchase agreement to accept payment after the money has been verified but before it has been credited. This is a completely reasonable demand and should be agreed to.
When the funds are deposited into the account, all that remains is to hand over the documents for the car and the keys. After that, you can say goodbye and go about your business. If you wish, you can even immediately withdraw money without leaving the cash register.
Payment after self-checking the car using VIN
A compromise solution is to check the car's history yourself. For example, the check can be carried out using the VIN or license plate number on the website avtocod.ru. For 349 rubles you can buy a full report on the history of the car here. From it you will learn:
- data from PTS;
- number of owners;
- participation in an accident;
- actual mileage;
- OSAGO data;
- presence of restrictions;
- history of fines;
- customs history;
- and much more.
All is clear? Then proceed as we advised at the very beginning: draw up an agreement, transfer money, shake hands and register the car when it is convenient.
Pros: you are confident in the purity of the transaction, and you don’t have to persuade the seller to go to the traffic police.
Cons: almost none. Commission to an auto expert, respect to a familiar traffic cop, or a nominal fee for service.
Bottom line: when is the best time to transfer money?
It is safest to pay only after registering the car. Agree on this with the seller in advance. Write down the conditions (prepayment, transfer of all funds) in the contract; it is drawn up in free form.
If the seller does not agree, check the car yourself before the traffic police. Check its history with the help of a service, an auto expert or a friend from the traffic police.
How to transfer money when buying a car
The right moment to transfer the money has been sorted out. We tell you how this can be done.
Give in cash
A very popular method, despite the danger of running into a criminal. If you decide to act this way, take these steps:
- Take a friend with you, or better yet two. They will also become witnesses in the event of a trial.
- Choose a safe place: a bank, hotel reception or business center. A large store or an empty street will not do.
- Together, in front of witnesses, count the entire amount.
- Request a receipt from the seller stating that he received the money. It must contain the seller’s passport details, the amount and subject of the transaction.
Be careful and attentive. It is also advisable to check the banknotes for authenticity.
Act through the bank
If you don’t want to tickle your nerves, use the services of a bank. The service can be:
- Rent a cell. You come to the bank with your passport and write an application to rent a safe. Explain to the bank employee the purpose of the event, and he will help you correctly indicate the conditions for separate access. Leave the money in the safe deposit box so that the seller can pick it up after handing over the keys or registering the car, depending on how you agree. This method of transferring money for property is considered one of the most reliable, but it also has its drawbacks. The contents of the locker are not specified in the lease agreement. That is, the buyer can put 100 rubles inside instead of a million. The verification and recounting of money must be negotiated separately with the bank. You can also submit this matter to a notary; check with the bank for details.
Letter of Credit. Unlike a safe, the service is intended for cashless payments. How does this happen:
- The seller and you enter into a contract.
- You bring the DCT and your passport to the bank and write an application to open a letter of credit.
- Open a bank account and deposit the required amount into it.
- The seller fulfills the terms of the contract and provides supporting documents to the bank. What documents these will be are decided by the parties.
- The bank verifies the documents and transfers the money to the seller.
This method is most often used when purchasing real estate. In the case of a car, it is not easy to decide which documents will serve as confirmation that the transaction has been completed. Therefore, we advise you to get advice from the bank.
- Transfer money to a card. This can be done at a bank branch, through an ATM, app or mobile bank. There are only restrictions on the transfer amount. For example, the daily limit in Sberbank Online is 500,000 rubles.
The buyer transfers the entire amount, and the seller checks his account. At the same time, it will be almost impossible to withdraw money without the consent of the recipient. At Sberbank, for this, the applicant will have to come to the branch and, most likely, resolve the issue through the court.
- Transferring cash through a cashier. This is also a good option. Choose any branch of your bank, order money and come there on the appointed day along with the car seller. Go to the cashier's booth, withdraw money and give it to the former owner in exchange for the keys. The choice is yours.
When is the best time to transfer money?
Of course, the buyer can transfer funds at any time, even at the stage of drawing up the contract.
However, if the buyer wants to protect himself as much as possible, experts recommend making payment after the vehicle is registered with the traffic police. The buyer should offer this option to the seller in advance. Moreover, it is advisable to display this fact in the contract itself. Quite often the seller wants to receive an advance payment. If it was done, then this also needs to be recorded in the document. It is worth paying attention to the behavior of the seller. If he does not agree to receive the money only after registering the car, there may be some problems here. You can find out all the information about the car with the help of traffic police officers, automobile experts, and special services. In general, as already mentioned, the buyer has the right to independently choose the payment option. The most popular of them include:
Payment at the time of conclusion of the contract
The main disadvantages of this option include the existing risks.
The fact is that drawing up a purchase and sale agreement only indicates that the parties have agreed. But it is quite difficult to predict how smoothly the deal will go. It is possible that when registering a car, it may turn out that the car is listed as stolen, is under arrest or is under bail. Accordingly, it will be quite difficult to find an unscrupulous seller who has already received the money. But if you personally know the seller and know the history of the car first-hand, the risk is minimized. It is unlikely that someone you know will try to pull off such a scam. In such situations, it may be possible to transfer money when drawing up an agreement. In this case, the buyer receives documents and keys. After this, the new owner independently deals with registration, obtaining new signs and other re-registration.
( Video : “TRANSFER OF MONEY WHEN BUYING A CAR! HOW TO BUY A USED CAR”)
Payment after registration with the traffic police and prepayment
To minimize risks, especially if the transaction is concluded between strangers, money can be given after registration.
Typically, the buyer offers the seller a small advance payment, which confirms that he is serious about purchasing a car. However, most of the amount is transferred only after the car is checked and registered with the traffic police. Although this option has certain nuances. For example, the seller may be worried that after re-registration he will no longer be the owner, but has not yet received the full amount. So that the seller does not get nervous when drawing up the contract, it is necessary to indicate that ownership will pass to the buyer only after payment of the entire specified amount. Naturally, when transferring money, you need to take a receipt from the former owner, both for receipt of the advance payment and for receipt of the entire remaining amount.
This deal is considered ideal for the buyer. After all, only after he is convinced that there are no problems with the car will he hand over the money. As for the seller, there is also an important advantage for him. After registration, he will know that he is no longer officially the owner. Accordingly, if traffic rules are violated in this car, fines will not be issued to him. Although not every person will agree to receive money in this way. This is due to the fact that in order to register, he, together with the buyer, must visit the traffic police department. He may not want to sit in lines for hours.
Payment after self-checking the car using VIN
There are situations when you really like the car, but the seller does not agree with payment only after registration.
In this case, the buyer has the opportunity to independently check the vehicle. Using the Autocode website, you need to enter the license plate number or VIN code. By paying a small amount, any user can obtain any information of interest: the number of former owners, fines, customs history and much more. There is no reason not to trust this test. In essence, the user buys this information on the official portal. If there are no problems, you can safely draw up an agreement by transferring funds. This option has virtually no downsides. Payment for obtaining information is only symbolic. But at the same time, the buyer receives an important advantage - he knows that the object of the transaction is a “clean” car.
How to transfer money when buying a car
Here, too, the parties must jointly decide in what way the buyer will transfer the money to the seller. Of course, sellers often choose the simplest method. However, the new owner strives to choose the safest option for himself, which will provide maximum protection against fraudulent activities. There are three main ways to transfer money:
Give in cash
Of course, there are certain risks here.
For example, if any disputes arise after the transaction, it will be difficult for the buyer to prove that he actually transferred the money. But even if this option was chosen, you should take care of maximum security. For example, to transfer funds, it is recommended to choose a quiet place where there will be no prying eyes. The recipient should also be required to provide a corresponding receipt. If possible, you can take someone you know to the deal. They will not only help in case of an unforeseen situation, but will also witness the transfer of funds. As for the seller, there are also certain risks. For example, having received a large sum in his hands, he may be robbed. This also needs to be taken into account in advance. You can also take friends with you, or leave after the transaction by car. If the buyer is not a person you know, it is recommended to check the authenticity of the banknotes. If the buyer cannot do this visually, they should seek help. For example, many exchange offices provide a service for checking banknotes using special devices.
By card
This is a fairly convenient option. Firstly, the participants in the transaction will not have to deal with cash, and therefore there is no need to worry about safety. Secondly, money can be transferred not only using a terminal, but also through a mobile application. This means you can do this absolutely anywhere. In addition, if, due to any problems, the matter comes to trial, the checks evidencing the transfer will become official evidence of this fact. Although you need to know, some banks set daily limits on card transfers. You should ask a bank employee about the amount of the limit and whether it is possible to remove it.
Via bank
If it is not possible to transfer funds online, you can do it directly at a bank branch.
You can simply transfer money to the seller’s personal account. But if he does not have a bank account, you can do it in another way. So, almost all banks offer a letter of credit. This service is used specifically in situations like this. So, after concluding an agreement, the parties must come to a bank branch to open a letter of credit. In this case, a copy of the purchase and sale agreement is presented. Essentially, this opens an account into which money is deposited. After the seller fulfills all the conditions specified in the contract, he brings supporting documents to the bank.
After checking them, bank employees transfer the funds to the seller. Although you need to know, this option is often used in real estate transactions. If we are talking about a car, you need to decide in advance what kind of documentation can confirm the fulfillment of duties. A bank employee will help you determine what documents the seller must provide.
There is an easier way to transfer money using a bank. To do this, you can rent a safe deposit box. When registering, you must inform the bank employee for what purpose the safe is being rented. In this case, the specialist will help you correctly draw up the conditions under which the seller can gain access to the cell and withdraw the money. Despite the reliability of this option, there are some disadvantages. For example, when concluding documents for renting a safe deposit box, the applicant does not indicate the amount. Thus, the buyer can deposit not two million, but only one hundred rubles. In such situations, the seller must protect himself. That is why the parties must agree with the bank so that the money is placed in the safe deposit box in the presence of employees who will count it.
( Video : “How people cheat when selling a car! The whole scheme in one video! Volkswagen”)
Bottom line: what's the best way to transfer money?
Involve the bank. It's safer and more reliable, but not always free. Renting a locker will cost you at least 1,000 rubles, and a letter of credit will cost from 1,500. If you pay in cash, take safety measures: choose a quiet place, take a brutal friend with you and demand a receipt from the seller.
Remember: each option for transferring money should be agreed upon with the seller in advance so that there are no surprises. If a transaction seems suspicious to you, contact a lawyer for advice or act strictly through the bank.
Happy shopping!
ATM method
This option concerns checking money, and it is not the best, but it is allowed. The advantage is that this device perfectly checks banknotes for authenticity and does not allow counterfeits. However, there are also disadvantages. Firstly, if there are a lot of funds, then it may take a lot of time to check. Secondly, it can be unsafe near an ATM, so it is better to choose places where there is security nearby, for example, a supermarket or a bank.
The method is suitable for people who have a card to which they can deposit and withdraw funds without interest. Then it will really be possible to check banknotes using this device.
If you wish, you can contact the bank to have the money counted and verified. However, this will be for a certain fee, for example, they may take one percent of the amount or even more. If you go to a banking institution for this purpose, then it will be useful for them to seal the entire amount in vacuum packaging. Then it cannot be replaced. You can also remove a special storage box so as not to lose money.
