Selling Your Motorbike: Guide
A Picture Tells A Thousand Words
It’s surprising how many people actually take photos of a dirty bike! Trying to sell a bike with dirt on it says a lot about how you have cared for the vehicle in your time of ownership. While you’re doing the pre photos preparation and clean, also ensure the engine is working smoothly, change the oil, check brakes and do all the necessary repairs.
There is the thought ‘I’m selling it anyway, don’t want to spend anything on it!’. Well if you’re wanting a quick sale for below the asking price, then that’s ok. If you want to get top dollar, spend as little before it goes on sale. Trying to sell a bike with problems is just going to cause you grief, and it gives the buyer help when they start bargaining!
Be Real
Keeping it real on price is the best way to get an easy sale. Do your market research and see what the real value of your bike is, things to consider when valuing your bike:
✓ Year
✓ Condition
✓ Mileage
✓ Service history
✓ Potential damage
✓ Modifications & Extras
It all depends on how fast you want a sale and what condition your bike is in. For example, if you have kept your motorbike in prime condition and you believe its worth more then the market is suggesting, put it on for more. You will eventually come across a buyer who is fine with paying for a cleaner bike. This comes back to how fast you want to sell..as getting to this person could take a while!
So how do you price check? With the marvellous internet, price checking is actually very easy to do and the information simple to access. Places to check out:
► Gumtree
► Preloved
These are great sites, they will all give you an idea of where to place your bike online. If you are looking for a fast sale, something to keep in mind on the listing sites is where your advert will appear when searching. For example, if someone goes on eBay motors and fills in the simple details ‘Honda, CB500’..and lists by price, where is your ad when scrolling down?
If you want a fast, easy sale then sites like We Buy Any Bike are ideal. You simply fill in your registration number and see what quote you get back. We Buy Any Bike also offer free nationwide collection, so all you need to do is press accept and arrange a pickup date.
Know Your Bike
Know your bike inside and out, if a buyer knows more than you about the make and model it gives them the advantage. There are some people that might use their knowledge (or your lack of) as something to benefit from. Having background information on the vehicle will also make you feel more confident in general when talking and discussing with potential buyers.
Organisation Is Key
As I mentioned earlier, people associate the bike with the owner so being organised with the correct documents to hand gives a good impression and backs the asking price. Items to make sure you have nearby included:
► V5
► Past History
► Extra keys, owner’s manual, spare parts, service manual
► HPI check
► Bill of Sale
A motorbike without an MOT can be difficult to sell, so to make life easier we’d suggest getting one. Tax isn’t as important but the buyer could use this as a haggling point.
Everyone Can Buy, Not Everyone Can Ride
Test rides are tricky, there are some people you will meet and straight away know you don’t want them to test ride your bike. Others that you might consider, but there are things you should check out before letting anyone loose with the keys.
Is he or she qualified? Check motorcycle license
Are they wearing gear? While they are on your bike, they are on your watch! A helmet is required by law.
Who’s to say they will come back? It’s optional, but you could ask for a down payment pre-ride out – this shows some commitment and potentially covers collateral. Some sellers just ask for cards/keys/driving licences to be left behind, so its whatever you feel comfortable with.
Be Flexible
It’s a good idea to be a little flexible with people, not everyone has cash available on short notice. This is obviously completely up to you and what kind of reception your bike has received so far. If you seem to have people fighting over it, you have no need to come to payment arrangements with someone who needs time to get the money together. However, if you haven’t had that many viewings, it’s not worth turning someone away because they need to make payment in a couple of chunks.
When it actually comes to the sale, cash is the easiest option as taking cheques or bank transfers can take a while to clear.
Paperwork
Getting the paperwork correct at this point covers you from any possible problems in the future. Make time to sit down with the buyer create a receipt (and copy), details to include:
► Buyer and seller details
► Amount, date
► Details of the bike
► How they have paid
► Signatures – write ‘sold as seen’
You should then give the buyer the New Keeper section of the V5 log book, get them to write their details and mileage of the bike on the main section on the V5. It’s then your job to send it away to the DVLA, they will then send a new copy to the buyer with their details.
Don’t Be Messed Around
Don’t be messed around. If you start to feel like someone is delaying payments or if they don’t actually have the money to pay you at all, just get out of there! It’s not worth the stress.
Selling Your Motorbike Online
If you want to sell a bike online, why not try We Buy Any Bike. We offer a free online motorcycle valuation, taking less than a minute. We are the biggest motorbike trader and bike buyer in the UK, so we know how to make selling your bike easy.
Are you selling Your motorbike?! Well, why not try We Buy Any Bike. We pay the most and collect the quickest.
Who will buy my motorcycle?.. we will. We offer a much quicker and easier way to sell your bike than on eBay motors or MCN!
Don’t just take our word for it, check out our Trust Pilot of customer reviews: Reviews.
Helmut
12 Apr 2022
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