How to buy vehicles from Auctions and wovi inspections

By Lisa Cockerill

With Queensland summer’s comes tropical storms. The auction houses will start to overflow with hail and storm damaged repairable write offs. Cheaply priced vehicles with paint and panel damage is an opportunity for many car buyers.

Many people have heard a story of someone who has picked up the steal of the year at the Auctions. They have this near new car and paid next to nothing for it.

Unfortunately there are many stories of inexperienced buyers picking up lemons and hoping that they were going to be one of the lucky ones to find the great deal.

Among the hail damaged there will be vehicles that are at the auction house for very different reasons. And to keep in mind that not all the vehicles that have hail damage to the paint and panels that you can easily see are mechanically sound before the storm.

Why vehicles are not sold privately

It is always a good idea to ask yourself:

“Why is this vehicle not been sold privately for the current market value?”

The hardest part about buying from the Auction houses is that you are buying the vehicle in its current condition. Majority of the time they will not even allow you to start the vehicle and test drives are out of the question.

Experienced motor dealers will pick up their stock from the Car Auctions but they have years of mistakes that they have learnt from and usually know what stock to avoid and what the look for. They are also prepared to spend money on the vehicle to bring it up to a Roadworthy Condition as long as they acquire it for the right price.

Members of the General Public need to be prepared to spend money on the vehicle in case it has repairs. The biggest risk is that the vehicle has a major repair that is more than what you paid for the vehicle or what a good condition vehicle currently sells for on the market without being written off.

If you are happy to take the risk and prepared to spend more money on the vehicle then you may very well become one of the lucky ones.

What do you need know about vehicles from the Auction Houses?

The vehicle does not come with a Safety Certificate

The auction house typically will not allow Safety Certificate Inspections on vehicles before they are purchased, as a road test is one of the requirements for the Safety Certificate.

Any vehicle that has a written off status on it will be very difficult to get finance on. Make sure that you check with your broker/financier before going to auctions to see what your options are.

You will need to organise a permit from the Queensland Department of Transport and Main Roads to be able to drive the vehicle from the auctions to an Approved Inspection Station or have a Mobile Safety Certificate company out to complete the Safety Certificate Inspection.

Go to www.wovi.com.au and complete the booking form. They will then contact you to make an appointment time. The locations for Brisbane and Gold Coast for Written Off Vehicle Inspections.

Brisbane

Manheim

110 Lamington Ave

Eagle Farm 4009

Gold Coast

Unit 10, 52-54 Township Drive

Burleigh Heads 4220

Why do you need to have WOVI inspections?

The Written off vehicle inspection is required to identify the history of the vehicle and to confirm that the identification of the vehicle is legitimate.

The inspection is an analysis of the vehicle’s history and repairs documents to ensure that the vehicle is not stolen and being resold into the marketplace.

If there are any doubts into the identity/history or documentation then the vehicle is then taken to the Queensland Police Service for a further inspection to see if they are able to confirm it’s original identity.

This system was designed to stop crime in the automotive industry and catch out car thieves when they are selling the stolen vehicle.

Things you are going to have prepared before the inspection

Valid and completed Safety Certificate

Organised to be able to leave the vehicle with the WOVI centre for the day or longer. You will need someone to come with you to pick you up and drop you back off to the WOVI Centre

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