Used Cars For Sale On eBay

There are thousands of used cars for sale on eBay every 
single day. In fact, eBay Motors is the most profitable 
sales division on eBay and naturally there are many 
entrepreneurs who are interested in jumping into this 
market. For instance, eBay claims it sells an SUV every nine 
seconds and is the biggest online car dealer in America, 
exceeding the traditional car companies. In fact, there are 
15 million cars sold over the Internet each year - and 
growing. 

The recent rapid growth of the consignment business model 
has made the used car market even more enticing. Many 
sellers are able to sell cars they have never even seen and 
with no more risk than the cost of the auction listing. Some 
negotiators even persuade the car owner to pay for the ad, 
thereby risking no more than their time. 

The biggest single issue for this business model is the 
trust of prospective buyers. After all, paying thousands or 
tens of thousands of dollars for a car sight unseen is an 
awesome leap of faith. Even buying for a plane ticket to go 
see a car before paying causes buyers to be uncomfortable. 

The best way sellers can overcome this fear is to use an 
escrow service. The one chosen by eBay is Escrow.com, which 
handles eBay auctions in the US and Canada. 

An escrow service acts as a neutral third party. In an 
exchange of merchandise, the buyer sends his money to 
Escrow.com and the seller ships the product to the buyer. 
The buyer usually has two days to inspect his purchase, and 
if he is happy, he notifies the excrow company who releases 
the money to the seller, minus its fee. If the buyer is 
dissatisfied, he returns the undamaged merchandise to the 
seller, and after the seller receives his merchandise back 
(in satisfactory condition), the escrow company returns the 
buyer's money. Thus both sides in the transaction are 
protected. The buyer almost always pays the fees for this, 
although sometimes buyer and seller split the cost. 

Escrow.com has created its "Vehicle Services Division" 
specifically for dealing with the used cars, trucks, SUVs 
and almost anything else with wheels and a motor. The buyer 
can have a 160 point inspection performed before agreeing to 
the purchase. This is an inexpensive service and certainly 
will save the buyer any headaches. 

* The buyer pays a $125 fee that is non-refundable 
* The seller is contacted and the inspection is carried out 
* The buyer receives a report 
* The buyer chooses to go ahead with the purchase - or not 

Another choice for the buyer is to deposit his payment with 
Escrow.com and then take delivery of the vehicle. The 
seller ships the car after he knows the money is secure with 
the escrow company. The seller must provide tracking 
information, which is verified by Escrow.com. 

The buyer has between one and 30 days to thoroughly inspect 
his new purchase (the period is negotiated between the two 
parties ahead of time). If this time expires and the escrow 
company has not heard from the buyer, it assumes he is happy 
and gives the purchase price to the seller. 

The buyer may return his vehicle if he isn't happy and 
sometimes buyers and sellers work out partial payment 
agreements, the buyer being satisfied with some parts of the 
transaction, but not with others. If a dispute arises, it is 
settled by the American Arbitration Association. 

The fee for this service is: 

* $0 - $7,500 = value of vehicle: $125 
* $7,500.01 to $15,000: $170 
* $15,000.01 to $30,000: $200 
* $30,000.01 to $50,000: $275 
* $50,000+ = 6% of the value 

Once both parties have agreed, the title transfer process 
begins and Escrow.com will guarantee this too, for a fee of 
$95. Title transfers are handled by Centerpoint Diversified 
Services which works in all 50 states. The fee, naturally, 
doesn't include any transfer costs - it is only insurance 
that the title will be expedited to the satisfaction of both 
parties. 

Escrow.com also offers a service that will ship cars almost 
anywhere in the world and will gather an auto history report 
to inform sellers if their new chariot has been salvaged or 
stolen, suffered flood or hail damage, been in a fire or 
accident, has had an odometer rollback or has been used as a 
police car, a rental or a taxi. 

Anyone considering offering used cars for sale on eBay would 
be well advised to thoroughly learn the services available 
through Escrow.com and offer those to prospective buyers. 
The trust factor will skyrocket and your chances of 
completing sales will dramatically increase.