Selling my scooter and a little concerned about some potential buyers

Discussion of the Genuine Buddy, Hooligan, Black Jack and other topics, both scooter related and not

Moderator: Modern Buddy Staff

Post Reply
mukaiboston
Member
Posts: 307
Joined: Mon Sep 06, 2010 5:01 pm
Location: Washington, DC
Contact:

Selling my scooter and a little concerned about some potential buyers

Post by mukaiboston »

I listed my scooter for sale and I'm not sure everyone writing me understands this is legally a motorcycle and I'm trying to assess how to go about this.

For example, I never intended to check for a motorcycle license, but I think I'm going to have to. No motorcycle license means DMV won't issue a plate. I can't be in a position where I am stuck with an unregistered vehicle and have signed away the title.

I'm not sure if people intend to drive off with no plate, no insurance, no registration, but I'm not comfortable with this. I really don't want anyone driving the scooter away with no plate (and I'm removing mine immediately and cancelling the registration so I'm not legally responsible for this after the sale).

Is it too much to require the buyer to come back with a plate or I take the scooter to the person and do the sale there before removing my plate? Or require the buyer to tow it? How do people normally handle private sales like this? Keep in mind DMV might be backed up as well due to Covid.

To give you an idea of what type of people have been contacting me, one guy was pressuring me saying he needed it bad and wanted me to sell now and fast. A second guy asked if I would trade. I said, you mean like another bike? He said, no. He has a mower or a speaker set worth $350. Ummm..
User avatar
DeeDee
Member
Posts: 1100
Joined: Sat Jul 26, 2014 5:07 pm
Location: Denver

Re: Selling my scooter and a little concerned about some potential buyers

Post by DeeDee »

Must have an endorsement to test. Must have cash to test. Ask to see both. I have a number of scooters, so I am always in a position to lead them on a test ride. If the potential buyer is taking it out without you, at a minimum hold on to their car keys and license. If they show up on foot, do not give them the keys. Once you strike a deal, fill out the buyer section in full. Buyer's name as it shows on their DL. Date of sale and purchase price. Make a copy of both sides. Write a bill of sale that states scooter is paid in full and sold as is with no warranty express or implied. When all of this is done, remove your plates, hand them the keys and call your insurance agent to remove the scooter from your policy. What the buyer does from this point on is not your concern.
Less chit chat, more riding, Buddy 50, 125, 170i, RH50, Yamaha C3
sc00ter
Member
Posts: 1140
Joined: Sun Mar 30, 2008 9:17 pm
Location: Norfolk VA

Re: Selling my scooter and a little concerned about some potential buyers

Post by sc00ter »

Very accurate Dee Dee. Last thing modified. Remove plate, make sure it's cancelled THEN cancel insurance. Uninsured tags carry a $500 penalty in VA. Ask me how I know.....

Not related to the above but a good "For Sale" story:

When I sold my Yamaha Zuma 125 the guy left it in his "secure" gated yard. Someone came by at night, lifted the gate off the hinges and rolled it away. Buyer called me the next morning and asked if I could claim the theft on my insurance. I told him no, I cancelled the plate and insurance the same day. Basically, tough luck. I figured he was trying to scam me anyways. Claim it on MY insurance, ha ha. I told him to claim it on his renters insurance.
User avatar
eggsalad
Member
Posts: 232
Joined: Sat Mar 14, 2020 8:42 pm
Location: Las Vegas

Re: Selling my scooter and a little concerned about some potential buyers

Post by eggsalad »

Your profile says that you're in DC, which means you might be dealing with a buyer from any of 4 or 5 jurisdictions, each with their own set of rules about buying a vehicle. Just as an example (and I'm making this up) maybe MD says it's okay to drive a newly-purchased vehicle home without a plate, so if your buyer is from MD, they can do that. It appears that you're saying that in DC, a person can't register a motorcycle without an endorsement. I've never heard of such a thing. I've lived in states where you don't even need a license at all to register a vehicle! Of course, good luck getting insurance without a license/endorsement, but that's not your problem. If you have a copy of the bill of sale and a photo of the buyer's DL, you're probably free of responsibility from what the buyer does with the vehicle. (But I am not a lawyer!)

Part of your "job" as a seller is to assess any potential buyer. If you get sketchy vibes, demand to see their endorsement, etc. If you get good vibes, relax. When I bought my Buddy, part of what I was doing was developing a relationship with the sellers. You have to read people. Because we had built a trust, the sellers let me ride home on their expired Hawaii plate, with the signed title in my pocket - and no insurance. But all of those risks were on me, not the seller.

Once you do a deal, all the onus is on the buyer, assuming you have all the paperwork to back up the fact that you've sold the vehicle. If they want to do something stupid, that's not your problem. But again, I am not a lawyer.
User avatar
tenders
Member
Posts: 415
Joined: Mon Dec 03, 2018 1:08 am
Location: NYC area

Re: Selling my scooter and a little concerned about some potential buyers

Post by tenders »

Just want to reiterate that it is highly unlikely a motorcycle license endorsement is required to register or insure a scooter in any state. I bought mine from a private seller, and insured and plated it before I got my endorsement.

Do NOT give a new buyer your plates. Make sure you execute TWO copies of the bill of sale, and that the terms specifically say the sale is taking place on an "as is, where is" basis. From that point you are well-protected legally.

But you are not protected from a potential hassle if the buyer gets his dumb self in trouble before going through proper documentation, and the DMV/gendarmes start looking for you. That is the problem to avoid with potentially sketchy buyers: having to SHOW that stuff isn't your problem.
User avatar
eggsalad
Member
Posts: 232
Joined: Sat Mar 14, 2020 8:42 pm
Location: Las Vegas

Re: Selling my scooter and a little concerned about some potential buyers

Post by eggsalad »

tenders wrote: Fri Oct 15, 2021 12:41 pm Just want to reiterate that it is highly unlikely a motorcycle license endorsement is required to register or insure a scooter in any state.
I was really confused by this, too. I mean... I've only lived in 5 states, which leaves 45 states + DC that I don't know the laws of. But I can logic it out this way... If I own a corporation I can buy a Buddy or a Peterbilt and register it to the company - even though the corporation doesn't have a driver's license, much less an MC endorsement or a CDL!

I think the OP must be mistaken about this, or the laws of DC are really weird, and you can't register a vehicle to a corporation there.
Post Reply