Paperwork
Here is a list of the paperwork involved in buying a used car:
- Safety Inspection
- Emission Inspection
- Proof of Insurance
- Title
- Bill of Sale
Safety Inspection
One of your steps you MUST do when inspecting a used car is to make sure the Safety Inspection is current and has not expired – see my Used Car Inspection Kit
All states have a requirement of yearly or every other year safety inspections. Used car dealers should have done this already before the car was put up for sale. A private sale is another matter. Normally the Safety Inspection can be transferred to another owner within a 60-90 day window from the day it was performed. You will need a current Safety Inspection before the DMV issues you new plates.
The seller should do this since the inspection may fail and repairs must be done – who pays for those repairs?
Emission Inspection
Most states have a second inspection, the Emission Inspection. This test is done by a computer which talks to the computers in the car which monitor emissions. Model years 1998 and newer have the computers in the cars and they are subject to state emission testing.
Failure of the Emission test can mean a lot of money in repairs – have the current owner get a current emission test before you buy – if not you could pay more in fixing the car than you paid to buy the car.
Proof of Insurance
After you inspect the car you will be doing a test drive – you must be covered by insurance. Your existing policies probably will cover you but that’s just a guess isn’t it? If the current owner does not have a current Proof of Insurance car in the glove box and you get in an accident the legal fees you will pay to clear your name will easily cost more than the used car is worth.
If the owner does not have current Proof of Insurance then let him drive the car – don’t you dare drive that car.
Title
The net result of buying a car is to get your name on the title. There are 20 types of titles and only one of them is the one you want. If the car was totaled in an accident there is a special kind of title for that. My Kit goes into all of this.
Inspect the title before take the test drive – it should NOT have a lien on it (loan) and the name of the owner MUST be the person selling it. If not the police will get involved and lawyers and courts and you don’t want any part of this.
Bill of Sale
ALL DMVs require a bill of sale between the buyer and seller – certain information MUST be included on the Bill of Sale. My Kit has a Bill of Sale that can be used. The Bill of Sale is the legal document that the DMV wants and if you leave off any information or its not done properly there will be headaches for you.
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