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What documents you need to sell a used car or motorbike

Updated

The paperwork for selling a vehicle falls into two groups, and confusing them is expensive. There is what you cannot sell without, and there is what you can sell without but for less money.

What you must have in the UK

Without these, nothing completes:

If you are selling in continental Europe

The names change and so do the rules. In France you need the carte grise struck through, a certificat de cession, a certificat de situation administrative and a contrôle technique less than six months old. In Italy you need the carta di circolazione, the certificato di proprietà, a deed of sale with an authenticated signature, and a valid revisione.

The paperwork nobody requires but everybody pays for

No law asks you for these, and they are what decides whether the buyer pays your price or starts negotiating:

The mistake almost everyone makes

People deal with the paperwork the week before the advert goes up. By then it is too late, for two reasons.

The first is practical: invoices from six years ago cannot be recovered, and the garage that has closed down will not reprint them.

The second is subtler. A history built over time is credible precisely because it grew alongside the vehicle. A folder assembled in a hurry before the sale is recognisable, and it worries a buyer instead of reassuring them.

The compulsory documents can always be obtained in a few days. The service history cannot: it is built while you own the vehicle, or it does not exist. Garage Saga is there to build it without thinking about it, and it is free.

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