How to sell your car

Selling your classic in front of a live audience can be exciting, and ensures your car finds its correct level in terms of market value. We will help you from valuation, vehicle preparation, cataloguing and marketing, through to the auction itself and a smooth conclusion of the sale.

The Valuation

The consignment process begins with a discussion about your car. The make, model, age, condition, and history will all influence its collector profile and are essential to determining a realistic market value. We can either conduct a desktop valuation or we will travel to you to assess your car and its history in more detail. At the same time we will discuss suitable auction venues, catalogue estimates and your reserve price.

Consigning Your Car

The next step is to confirm the car’s place at auction and complete your auction entry agreement. Once signed we will immediately start preparing your catalogue entry.

Professional Photography
We will send one of our approved professional photographers to generate in the region of 100 suitable images of the exterior, interior, finer details and also the history records. We can also cater for more specific requirements such as action shots and video footage for websites and social media.

Catalogue Description
Your specialist will compile detailed information, working with you to create an attractive and accurate catalogue description. Any history, paperwork, receipts, service logs or title documents you have are essential to this process; it is important that our descriptions faithfully represent the cars and their condition.

Marketing your car
Once the catalogue description is finalised, we promote your car via Coys’ marketing channels, aimed at maximising exposure in the run up to the sale:

• Coys.co.uk – our website has over 400,000 views each month
• A feature listing in our auction catalogue – which is distributed to collectors in advance and at the auction itself
• Email – to our own list of over 20,000 enthusiasts and dealers worldwide
• Sponsored newsletters – via various online media partners
• Social media – via our Facebook, Instagram and Twitter accounts
• PR – interesting cars will be promoted to national newspapers and classic car magazines
• Online bidding partners – who will promote your car to their own online audiences
• Major car classified websites – (Car & Classic, PistonHeads, ClassicCarsForSale)

Preparation for sale

How the car is presented can have a significant impact on the level of interest it generates, and importantly can add greatly to the final sales price achieved. In preparation for photography we suggest getting the car thoroughly cleaned before they arrive, as the photographs they take will become a central feature of the car’s entire marketing campaign.

When preparing for auction, we recommend getting the car serviced to ensure that it is running well and in good mechanical order; ‘on the button’ cars tend to attract more attention than those requiring maintenance. It is also worth considering that while on display at the event, registered bidders and interested buyers will be free to inspect the car and assess its condition. As such, Coys offer an on-site detailing service to ensure your car is looking its best from every angle.

Delivery & Storage

If you need help with delivery to and from auctions then we partner with a number of specialist logistics firms to provide a safe and secure transportation service. We can arrange for the car to be picked up and delivered directly to the auction venue the day before the event, or can have it brought to our showroom several days in advance to facilitate any pre-sale viewings and inspections.

Aftersales

In the event of a successful auction sale, responsibility for the car will pass from you to the buyer. Coys will invoice the buyer for the car and will hold the vehicle’s history and ownership documents until payment clears. We issue our vendors with a payment invoice within 7 days and you will receive your agreed payment in full via bank transfer within 14 days from the date of sale.

If the car fails to sell, all is not lost, and we ask that you allow us 7 days after the auction to follow up with underbidders to coordinate a post-auction sale. This period can be extended at your discretion; you may opt to return your car to Coys’ showroom for an agreed term whilst we continue to contact interested parties on your behalf.

Entry Forms

You can download the entry form here. You can print the entry form and either scan and email or post it completed to us.

Terms and Conditions

Here are the Terms & Conditions of Business which apply to both buyers and sellers.