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Tuesday, March 19th
As a division of Lithia Motors, Inc, Driveway is one of the newer options for selling cars. Like many of their competitors, this service lets you get an online offer and have your vehicle picked up at your house or other location.
Standard online quote process
How does it work when selling a car to Driveway? The fastest way is to use your VIN or license plate number to give them some initial information, like the make and model of your vehicle and some trim details. You'll then answer questions about its mileage, installed options and overall condition. Last, provide your contact information so that a Driveway team member can reach out to you with an offer.
Offers aren't exactly "instant"
We didn't love that last aspect of the Driveway process: having to wait for contact. Most of their rivals provide that information right on the website, to give you a ballpark of what to expect. So much for "get an instant offer" like they describe in their "How It Works" page.
Driveway "valet" comes to you
Let's say you hear from a Driveway rep and you like the sound of the initial offer. What's next? You set up a time for their "valet" to come to your location. They'll perform an inspection process that lasts 30 minutes or less: verifying the condition details you entered on the site and taking it on a test drive. They'll confirm Driveway's final, official offer to buy your car; if you accept it, you can either get a bank transfer within 24-48 hours from when your car is picked up, or you can get a physical check in the mail. Just be sure that you have the keys, photo ID, title and registration at the time of your valet appointment - and everyone listed on the title/registration has to be present. Your offer is good for 7 days, if you need more time to think about it.
Limited feedback, mostly negative
But should you take them up on it? We'd say no. There's not enough feedback on Driveway to convince us that sellers will get the best opportunity here. The BBB gives this company an "F" rating for failure to respond to just under a dozen complaints; that's not a high number in itself, but the lack of response is troubling. We didn't see any independently-verified reviews from anyone who used Driveway to sell their car, but we found a handful of comments from car buyers who said they were left without needed paperwork months after the purchase date. It stands to reason that could happen with the selling process too.
Room for improvement
We hope to see good things from Driveway in the future, like dozens of reviews from car-sellers who have nothing but glowing remarks for the entire experience and a dramatically-improved rating from the BBB. Until then, this company doesn't come close to earning our seal of approval for people hoping to sell their cars.
Gone are the days of newspaper classifieds and putting a "for sale" sign in the dashboard window: most people today sell their cars online. It's usually easy, often fast, and there are lots of tools to help you set a competitive asking price. Generally speaking, you'll choose between two different methods of selling your car: getting a cash offer from a dealership (either online-only or one with a brick-and-mortar location near you) or creating a listing to sell it privately - like those newspaper ads but digital.
Which one is right for you? That depends. Cash offers often eliminate a lot of hassle: you don't have to screen prospective buyers, set up multiple appointments with interested customers, or verify the authenticity of their payment method. Many of the online-only services will pick up the vehicle at no charge, from any address you specify.
Of course, that convenience may cost you. Not every service with cash offers will take cars in any condition, and you may get more money for your car with a private buyer. After all, they're trying to avoid the markup that always happens after a dealership buys a used car and puts it on their lot, so you might be able to meet in the middle and start at a higher asking price. Many people selling cars try both at the same time: shopping around for the best cash offer while testing the waters with a private listing. It's up to you.
What will you need to sell your car? Either route you choose, you'll almost always need current, valid registration papers; any available key fobs/remotes and manuals; valid state-issued photo ID; and, typically, anyone named as an owner on the title needs to be present at the time of sale. Are you required to have a paper title in hand? That depends on the state where you live and the terms of the car-selling service you select.
There are quite a few sites out there for selling cars. Which one is the best for you? Keep these criteria in mind to help you decide:
To help you choose the right platform for selling your car, TopConsumerReviews.com has evaluated and ranked the most popular services currently available online. We hope this information makes it possible for you to sell your car quickly and get the most possible cash out of the deal!
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