BUYING

When someone comes into the auction to buy a vehicle, the most commonly asked question is HOW MUCH you want for the vehicle? Good Question!

1. When a vehicle is consigned to CI Auctions we do not want vehicles with a reserve or minimum price that are more than ten years of age.
2. Vehicles that are newer than ten years of age are permitted to have a reserve or upset price on them. Not all sellers sell that way but they can if they like.

So now you know the first terms of an auction.

RESERVED: which means the vehicle has an upset or minimum price.

UNRESERVED: which means the vehicle has no upset or minimum price. Unreserved vehicles sell to the highest bidder.

So know we know the auction sells both reserved and unreserved vehicles. When I ask about a reserved price on the vehicle why won't the staff tell me the reserved price?

All to often when people sell any kind of product whether it be a house, vehicle , or any other commodity. Sellers will speculate on a selling price. How often have you heard someone who is selling a house say, "Well we listed it with the Real Estate Agent at $150,000.00 but if someone offers us $140,000.00 we're going to sell it." The same thing applies to vehicles. Our job is to show the seller the most money the day of the sale, good or bad. The seller then has to make a decision whether to sell or not all this has to take place in the sale ring.

So now you can see why the auction does not want to discuss reserve prices. We want our buyers to do their research. It goes like this:

1. Look the vehicle over carefully check out the mechanical condition, engine transmission, lights, interior body, etc. Find out what kind of equipment the vehicle has, size of engine, standard or automatic transmission, air, tilt, cruise control etc. You can come into the office and get the keys for any vehicle being auctioned off. Just tell the office staff the number that is in the front windshield of the vehicle.
2. Have a mechanic or a knowledgeable friend check the vehicle out as well. Get a second opinion.
3. We do not permit test drives, but only on an off sale week. (Inquire at the Office.)
4. Check out 4 or 5 vehicles so that if one vehicle sells to high for your liking then you have a second or third choice lined up.
5. Pick up your local newspaper, Prince George Bargain Finder, Auto Trader, Buy & Sell, and do some research on the value of the vehicle you are looking at.

NOW YOU'RE READY

Auction sales move along fast. That is one of the reasons why I told you to do your research. You have checked out 4 or 5 vehicles, you know what kind of equipment they have, you have heard them run and you have also have a pretty good idea of what the vehicle is worth. Decide how much you want to pay for each choice and then you are ready to proceed.

1. First of all on sale day you want to go into the office and get a bidding card. The office staff will ask you for your drivers license so they have your proper spelling of your name, address & phone number. This is important because if you are successful in purchasing a vehicle it has to be transferred into your name.
2. Also you will want to pick up a catalogue of the vehicles being offered for sale in the catalogue. Each vehicle will be listed. Disclosures such as damage x-rentals, x-lease, taxi, police cars, out of province, etc., will be disclosed in the catalogue so make sure you get one. If the vehicle is not in the catalogue pay attention to the announcements the auctioneer makes on the car or ask the office staff if there is a declaration on the vehicle, prior to sale time.

METHODS OF PAYMENT

Cash, certified cheque, Interac Direct Payment (personal or company) cheque with a letter of credit only, bank drafts, or money orders.

WHY WE DO NOT TAKE CREDIT CARDS

We do not take credit cards because of commissions that credit companies charge. Sometimes the charge of the credit card would be more than the commission we charge.

LINE OF CREDIT CHEQUES

We do not accept line of credit cheques without a letter of credit because:

1. We do not know what your line of credit is
2. We do not know how much of your line is used.

OTHER AUCTIONS TAKE MY CHEQUE WHY WON'T YOU?

Not all auctions work the same. Some auctioneers will take cheques from people that they do business with all the time. This leaves the auction company in a very unreliable situation. We believe all our customers should be treated equally, therefore we ask that all customers obey the payment terms.

DO YOU EVER TAKE COMPANY CHEQUES THAT ARE NOT CERTIFIED?

(Yes we do) but only for people who are in the car business, who provide us with the following information.

1. Proof of Business License
2. Proof of Dealers License
3. A letter of credit from their bank with account information for the last 3 years.
4. Proof of GST Number
5. Proof of PST Number

Only after we have all this information will we permit these clients to write business cheques without being certified. (All this information must be updated annually).

WHAT IS THE TOTAL COST?

When you purchase a vehicle you pay 4 items

1. Purchase price
2. Buyers fee
3. PST
4. GST

WHAT ARE BUYERS FEES

Buyers fees defray cost of lien searches, registered owners searches, and damage reports. Most car lots call them documentation fees.

HOW MUCH ARE THE BUYERS FEES

Buyers fee charts are in our office and also in the sales ring. They are as follows per vehicle:

PURCHASE PRICE	BUYERS FEE
$1 - 999	$115.00
$1000 - 1999	$190.00
$2000 - 2999	$200.00
$3000 - 3999	$250.00
$4000 - 4999	$300.00
$5000+	$350.00

7 % Provincial Sales tax
6 % Goods & Services Tax

For Example:

If you purchased a vehicle for $3000.00

3000.00 Purchase price
 250.00 Buyers fee
 195.50 GST tax
 227.50 PST tax
3672.50 should be your total price

1. Now you know the payment terms
2. You have done your research
3. You have a bid card
4. Your financing is in place

All the vehicles with auction numbers that are in the yard on auction day will be driven through the auction ring. This is where the actual auction takes place. The auctioneer will ask for a price if no one bids he will back up to a lower price until he gets a bid. once he gets an opening bid he will ask again for a higher price until all bids are in. (Now if the vehicle is unreserved, it will be sold to the highest bidder.)

If the vehicle is a reserved vehicle the auctioneer will get the highest bid and ask the owner if he will accept the bid. (If the owner accepts the vehicle is sold.) (If the owner does not accept, the auctioneer will say that it takes more money.) At this point you are free to ask the auctioneer or ring man how much it takes to buy the vehicle.

WHAT IF THE SALE TAKES PLACE AT NIGHT AND THE BANK IS NOT OPEN FOR ME TO GET THE MONEY FOR MY PURCHASE?

If the sale takes place at night, we require a $200.00 dollar deposit that night the balance would be due the following day.

If the sale takes place during the day during banking hours, then full settlement is expected that day.

WHAT ABOUT INSURANCE?

At all our sales we have ICBC Insurance agents in the settlement office. They will handle all your insurance needs - plates, permits, etc.

WHAT IF I DO NOT WANT TO TAKE MY VEHICLE FOR A FEW DAYS?

No problem. As long as your vehicle is paid for and you have insurance on it, no problem.

Vehicles will be stored free for 4 days after that a charge of $5.00 per day will be charged to the purchaser.

WHAT IF I AM A STATUS INDIAN, DO I STILL HAVE TO PAY THE TAXES?

Yes, you do beacause the auction sale does not take place on reserve land. However, if you are a Status Indian, you can file back for the taxes.

WHAT IF I BUY A VEHICLE AND DECIDE I DO NOT WANT IT?

When we sell vehicles they are sold "AS IS/WHERE IS." We expect buyers to look vehicles over carefully. If a person decided that they did not want the vehicle after bidding on it, the auction would refuse that person from entering the auction facility and sue the buyer for loss of commission, etc.

(WE TAKE A VERY DIM VIEW OF THIS PRACTICE. IF YOU HAVE NOT LOOKED THE VEHICLE OVER DO NOT BID ON IT!)

IS THERE ANYTHING ELSE I SHOULD KNOW?

As long as a person checks out the vehicle they are interested in, does the research on prices they should have no problem at all. Always remember vehicles in premium condition will bring a fair price. A lot of the buyers will check vehicles over that they cannot afford with the hopes of getting a steal. When they see a vehicle coming through the auction ring at a steal they start bidding even when they have not looked at the condition of the vehicle. This is where most problems occur. Normally when a vehicle is selling for a very cheap price, there is a reason for it. We can not stress enough PLEASE DO THE RESEARCH, IF YOU DO YOU WON'T HAVE ANY PROBLEMS.

DECLARATIONS

Canadian Import This means the vehicle was once registered for road use in a different province. (It does not mean you have to inspect the vehicle.) All vehicles sold here are the BC Registered, (unless we say the vehicle needs to be certified.)

Foreign Import This means the vehicle was registered in another country. Once again it will be a BC Registered car unless otherwise specified.

DAMAGE OVER $2000.00 means the vehicle was involved in an accident with over $2000.00 in repair. This is in repair damage not existing damage.

REBUILT means the vehicle was an insurance WRITE OFF. All rebuilds must be certified by ICBC before going back on the road. All rebuilt vehicles we sell are ICBC registered.

INSURANCE WRITE-OFF PARTS ONLY means the vehicle sells as parts only. It can not be put back on the road.

INSURANCE WRITE-OFF means the vehicle must be rebuilt and certified before going back on the road.

EX TAXI means it used to be a taxi

EX POLICE means it used to be a police vehicle

EX LEASE means it used to be on a lease

EX RENTAL means it used to be a rental vehicle.