Unfortunately in today's world, nothing is safe. Bad and desperate people will take advantage of every opportunity they can.

One of those opportunities is when you are selling your car privately. Here are some quick tips to stay safe when selling your car.

Use Ghost Accounts

Advertise using a ghost account or email that is different than your personal account. Do everything you can to communicate through those accounts and channels so you don't have to give away your personal phone number or other information.

Meet in Public

When it is time to meet the buyer so they can view the vehicle, do so in a very public place, preferably a police detachment. Every police station is a willing host for these types of interactions. Many will even have dedicated areas for this. If you would prefer, call the detachment ahead of time for permission.

It's also a really good idea to have someone there with you at the meeting. If the buyer wants to test drive the car, make sure their driver's license isn't expired and join them. Bring your friend along, too

Keep Records

When transferring the paperwork, be sure to mark down the following:

• Agreement between: your full name and address / buyers full name and address which can be found on their driver's license.
• Full year, make, model, and VIN (Vehicle identification number) as found on the ownership document
• Make the note: "Vehicle sold as-is where-is with no warranty expressed or implied"
• Dollar amount
• One copy for you, one copy for the buyer

Sample bill of sale found here "Link" I'll find one that is legal to use in Ontario for private transactions.....we can make available as a free download with opt-in and set hubspot to do automatically ...right??

Also, be sure to only take cash or bank draft / certified cheque. Personal cheques can bounce and it will be a huge hassle in the best case scenario. NEVER EVER take a personal cheque

Remember...If you sell your car privately, you have no legal recourse on the buyer. If you transact with a licensed dealer, you are legally protected by OMVIC - The Ontario Motor Vehicle Industry Council www.omvic.ca