Because people see what they want to see, hear what they want to hear. If you buy a used car privately, you do three things: you get it to a mechanic you trust to have it inspected, you run a Carfax report to reveal if it’s been in any collisions or has any liens, and you don’t pay half of what you know it’s worth and think you’re getting away with something.
In Ontario and Alberta, respectively, OMVIC and AMVIC are consumer advocates who work to protect your rights. All dealerships and individual salespeople in Ontario are trained and certified by OMVIC; if you buy a car from them and something goes sideways (the deal, not the car), they go to bat for your rights, and they also have a compensation fund. Get ripped off by a registered OMVIC member, get your money back. Buy your car from a guy named Roy in the Walmart parking lot, and you’re on your own.
Rule One: Don’t buy a car that isn’t in the seller’s name. (Curbsiders leave the vehicle in the original owner’s name to avoid paying the HST on the transaction!) Curbsiders aren’t that difficult to spot; the problem is that people are only staring at the car they’re already imagining in their driveway, and allow themselves to get romanced in a tango with a thief.
Rule Two: Get it checked. Both with a Carfax — secure your own, not one a seller supplies — and your mechanic, get the vehicle checked. If the seller balks, walk away.
Rule Three: Stop kidding yourself. If you’re about to fork over $15,000 for a car worth double, you haven’t stumbled over a unicorn. They’ve stumbled over a fool.
There are excellent tips to identify and avoid curbsiders on the OMVIC site. Sure, there are tales of some pretty slick exchanges. I’ve heard of curbsiders dealing from legitimate dealer lots by meeting a customer there on a Sunday; many others will park on residential streets so you’ll assume they live there — in this case, check the ownership. They’re professionally scummy people, so they’re good at it.
It’s estimated that as many 1 in 5 vehicles offered “privately” are either stolen, rebuilt wrecks or have spent time under water! At Brantford Honda we practice full disclosure as required by law. We also offer Honda “Certified” vehicles which are newer, meet higher standards than MTO safety and can have Honda Plus warranty attached.
|