Comparison
Private sale usually pays more. Whether that difference is worth what it costs you is a different question, and the honest answer depends on your car.
Your registration is all we need to start.
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| Private sale | Car buyer | |
|---|---|---|
| Price | Higher — you keep the dealer margin | Trade level, in exchange for speed |
| Time | Weeks. Adverts, messages, viewings | Days |
| Risk | Payment fraud, test drives, disputes | Low; the buyer is a registered business |
| Effort | Photos, listing, negotiating, paperwork | A form and a collection slot |
| Finance | You must settle it first yourself | Settled with your lender directly |
| Certainty | Buyer may haggle or vanish | Terms stated before you accept |
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Then the real comparison is not private sale versus a buyer — it is part exchange versus selling separately, where the two prices are negotiated together and it is easy to lose money without seeing where it went.
A desirable, tidy car under roughly £15,000 with full history, no finance, and an owner with a few free weekends. That is the profile where the extra money is real and the hassle is manageable.
Questions
Typically the dealer margin, which varies by car. On mainstream vehicles it is often several hundred pounds; on prestige it can be considerably more.
It can be, with sensible precautions — cleared funds before release, no lone test drives, and scepticism about unusual payment arrangements.
Not until it is settled. You cannot pass good title while the lender owns the car.
Tell us about it once. We check the market and come back with the strongest price we can confirm.
Takes a couple of minutes.
Free · No obligation · No pressure to accept anything