jadefox

Hi,

I'm hoping some knowledgeable car enthusiasts can help me as I haven't really had any luck researching this on my own.

Cliff Notes

• Sold my car to a guy
• Guy buys under his company name
• I'm a little worried now
• Guy signed a bill of sale and release of liability form for me under his company's name
• He wrote my credit union a check for the balance owed and paid cash for the equity
• Am I being paranoid?

Long Version

Today I sold my car to a guy who looked a little shady. I still owed money on the vehicle so he sent a check to my credit union for the payoff amount and gave me the rest in cash (which was verified as clean bills by the bank). As he was filling out the papers I noticed that he was buying the car under the name of his company, Quality Imports in Cypress, CA.

It didn't really bother me at the time but now I'm starting to get a little worried. I called my credit union and they say they will not release the title until the funds clear, so that gives me some peace of mind. He signed all the paperwork (liability and bill of sale) under his company's name (I have his personal info however) and the title will be sent to him.

Am I just being paranoid?

Thanks for any information you can give me.

rmc22

You're being too paranoid.

You said your credit union will not release the title until the funds clear.

Shady or not, he's probably just doing it for the tax (and possibly insurance) benefits; neither affect your position in the sale.

jadefox

Thanks RMC.

I'm just letting the transaction play over and over in my head thinking about if I missed anything.

BTW, I forgot to mention that he was asking me to declare a higher sale amount than what he actually gave me. I gave him a look and asked why I might do that. He replied that he would get more money back on taxes. I quickly declined and we moved on from there. At another point he even tried to lower the sale price by claiming my car had been involved in an accident. It's only when I threatened to walk immediately that he relented. I mean, I know what people are thinking (why even deal with him), but at the time I thought it's all going to be okay as long as the funds check out (cash was okayed at the bank) and he had a certified check from BofA to mail Fedex to the credit union.

rmc22

You've spoken with your credit union and they are on your side. I'd move on. The fact that he was asking for those adjustments shows his intentions. It's the government he's scamming, not you.

BTW, good work on not flexing for his requests. It can be hard when you're getting so close to the sale, but you did the right thing. Falsifying the bill of sale could lead to some unnecessary stress.