The four models, and how to tell them apart
Single buyer services make the offer themselves. It is fast and clean, but there is exactly one price, and no way to know whether it is competitive without going elsewhere and starting again.
Dealer marketplaces put your car in front of multiple licensed buyers who price it independently. You see the spread, which is information a single offer can never give you.
Lead sellers are the ones to watch for. They collect your details and sell them, sometimes to several buyers at once. The tell is that you get an immediate phone call rather than a written offer, often from a business you have never heard of, and the calls do not stop.
Consignment means a dealer retails your car for you and takes a fee. It can beat wholesale on the right vehicle, but you keep ownership and risk while it sits.
Questions worth asking before you submit anything
- Who is making the offer? A named, licensed business, or an unspecified network?
- Is the offer in writing, with a validity period? A verbal number over the phone is not an offer.
- When is my phone number shared, and with how many parties? This determines whether you get a quiet process or a week of calls.
- Are there any fees to me? Any deduction at settlement, transport charge or administration fee should be disclosed before you commit, not at the end.
- What happens at inspection? A minor adjustment for undisclosed damage is normal. A pattern of large reductions on cars that matched their description is not.
- Who pays me, and how? A transfer from a licensed dealer's business account is the standard. Anything else deserves scrutiny.
The two red flags
First, an offer that is dramatically higher than everyone else's before anyone has seen the car. High online numbers that get revised down in your driveway are a known tactic, and by then you have committed emotionally and turned down the alternatives.
Second, pressure to accept immediately. A genuine offer is based on a considered valuation and can hold for days. Urgency is a sales technique, not a market condition.
What good looks like
Written offers, from named licensed dealers, with a clear validity period, no fees to you, your contact details withheld from dealers until you choose, and an inspection that confirms rather than renegotiates. That is the standard worth holding any service to, including this one.