Auction buying FAQ: 36 questions answered

It depends on the platform. Public auctions such as Copart, IAA, eBay Motors and Ritchie Bros. accept registered adult bidders, though access and fee tiers for salvage-title lots can still differ by state and buyer type. Dealer-only wholesale sites like Manheim, OPENLANE and ACV Auctions are closed to the public entirely. See who can bid where in dealer-only versus public auctions.

Only for dealer-only wholesale marketplaces such as Manheim, OPENLANE and ACV Auctions, all of which require a verified license before you can even register. Public salvage, repossession, government-surplus and enthusiast auctions do not require one, though a licensed broker is sometimes required to complete a specific salvage-title purchase in certain states. Our guide to the best auction platforms covers which ones are open to you.

A bidder number is the identifier a platform issues once your registration, identification and any required deposit clear, and it is what actually lets you place a bid. Some in-person sales print it on a physical paddle; online it is simply attached to your account. Our guide to registering for an auction walks through the documents each platform asks for first.

In a sealed-bid sale, you submit one best offer without seeing what anyone else bid, which removes bidding wars but puts all the valuation work on you before you submit. It suits a patient buyer who already has a firm walk-away number rather than someone who wants to react to competing bids in real time. Our comparison of sealed bid versus live bidding covers who each format actually favors.

A proxy bid lets the platform's system bid on your behalf up to a maximum you set in advance, raising your position automatically only as far as needed to stay ahead of the next bidder, and never past your limit. It keeps you from having to watch every increment while still capping your final cost. Our guide to setting a maximum bid explains how to size that ceiling correctly.

A reserve price is a confidential minimum a seller sets before the sale; if bidding never reaches it, the vehicle does not sell to the top bidder automatically. A no-reserve lot has no such floor, so the highest bid at closing wins outright, which is one reason no-reserve listings tend to draw sharper competition. See how the formats compare in how a car auction works.

It varies by platform and structure: Purple Wave charges a flat 10% on every lot, Cars & Bids charges 5% capped between $250 and $7,500, and Copart and IAA both publish tiered schedules that rise with sale price and change by payment method. There is no single industry number. Our guide to auction fees lines up the models with real examples.

Payment windows are short and platform-specific: IronPlanet gives 5 business days from contract, Ritchie Bros. wants full payment within 7 days of the auction's end, and Purple Wave sets a deadline of 4 p.m. on the second business day after the sale. None of these leave time to arrange financing after you have already won. Our guide to paying and collecting a win lists deadlines platform by platform.

A late payment fee applies first, sometimes within just a few business days of the sale, and a storage fee can start accruing on top of it. Miss the deadline badly enough and the platform can relist the vehicle, charging you a relist fee and, on some platforms, billing you for any shortfall if the second sale brings in less than yours did. See the full sequence in auction fees explained.

Line up financing before you bid, not after: payment windows are commonly just two to seven business days, far too short to apply for a loan once you have won. A handful of platforms help directly, such as Ritchie Bros. Financial Services, which can waive a bidding deposit for approved buyers. Our guide to registering for an auction covers deposit and financing options by platform.

Expect a gate fee for taking the vehicle off the lot, a documentation fee, and on some platforms an internet-bid fee for bidding remotely rather than in person. Individually these are usually under a hundred dollars each, but three or four of them stacked on a premium is where a buyer's rough math starts drifting from the real invoice. Our guide to auction fees covers each one.

Often, but expect a surcharge and a cap: IronPlanet charges a 2.95% card convenience fee, Ritchie Bros. charges the same rate as a late fee if a wire has not cleared in time, and Purple Wave caps credit card payments at $3,000 regardless of the purchase price. Wire transfer or a certified check is usually the cheaper option on anything expensive. See the numbers in paying and collecting a win.

Not automatically. It means an insurer declared the vehicle a total loss because the estimated repair cost exceeded a state-set share of its value, which says nothing on its own about whether the repair was done well. It does mean lower resale value and, in many states, restrictions on standard insurance coverage. Our guide to title brands explains how salvage differs from rebuilt and flood brands.

It means no title exists yet for that vehicle, so you will need a bonded or state-specific replacement title process that can take weeks and cost a real fee on top of the purchase price. It is not automatically a scam, but bid on one only if the price already reflects that delay. Our guide to checking a title and its liens explains when to walk away.

Most states let you search lien status through the state DMV or a UCC filing search, and if a listing discloses an existing loan, ask the seller for the lien release letter directly from the lender rather than taking their word that it is handled. A release letter is short and specific; a seller who cannot produce one is not one to pay yet. Our guide to checking a title and its liens covers the full process.

NMVTIS, the National Motor Vehicle Title Information System, is the federal database that participating states, insurers and salvage yards report into, and running a VIN through it will surface a prior salvage or junk record even when a seller's own paperwork looks clean. A commercial report typically costs a few dollars and takes a minute to pull. Our guide to checking a title and its liens explains how to order one.

Usually, once it has passed the state inspection that earns the rebuilt brand in the first place, though the rebuilt brand stays on the title permanently and most states still disclose the underlying salvage history to any later buyer. Registration steps and required paperwork vary by state, so confirm with your own DMV before you bid. Our guide to title brands explains how a rebuilt title differs from a clean one.

Often, though the format varies: some platforms offer an in-person preview window at a physical yard, while others rely entirely on listing photos and a written condition report. Purple Wave, for example, states plainly that every auction has an inspection period but performs no mechanical inspection itself. Check the specific lot's terms, and see what to look for in reading a condition report.

It grades a vehicle's cosmetic and mechanical state on the auction's own scale, lists damage codes and written announcements, and reflects a single inspection at one point in time. It is the seller's disclosure, not a guarantee, and it is only as good as what the inspector chose to write down. Our guide to reading a condition report covers grades, codes and announcements in detail.

It means the vehicle started and moved under its own power on the seller's lot on the day it was inspected. It does not mean the vehicle is safe to drive home, and it says nothing about hidden frame, electrical or transmission damage that only shows up once you own it. Our guide to transporting a won vehicle explains why that distinction matters for booking a carrier.

Work the listing photos in order against a checklist, decode the VIN and pull its history through NMVTIS, and ask the seller a short list of direct questions. Walk away if the photos never show the underside or the VIN plate, or the seller will not answer. Our guide to inspecting a vehicle remotely covers the full process step by step.

If the vehicle's value justifies it, yes: a local paid inspection catches things photos and a platform's own condition report can miss, and it is the only way to get an opinion that is not the seller's. Cars & Bids says outright that due diligence, including any inspection, is the buyer's own responsibility. Our 60-point inspection checklist is a useful script for the inspector or for yourself.

There is no single number; it depends on carrier availability, distance and whether the vehicle runs. Book against the yard's free storage window rather than your own calendar, since a truck that is a week out on its schedule can turn a cheap quote into an expensive one once storage charges are added. Our guide to transporting a won vehicle covers how to get a realistic pickup window.

Only if it is a run-and-drive unit and you can arrange a title, insurance and a temporary tag in time, since you cannot legally drive an unregistered vehicle on public roads without one. A vehicle that does not start or roll needs a flatbed or a winch-equipped carrier regardless of distance. Our guide to transporting a won vehicle covers all four ways to get it home.

Open transport carries a vehicle on an uncovered trailer and is the default, cheapest option for a running vehicle. Enclosed transport shields it from weather and road debris and typically adds 40% to 60% on top of an equivalent open-carrier price, which usually only makes sense for a higher-value or more fragile unit. Our guide to transporting a won vehicle has broader cost ranges for both.

Cost tracks distance and whether the vehicle runs; a non-running unit needs a flatbed or a winch-equipped trailer, which costs more than the same route with a running vehicle, and rates commonly run higher per mile on short hauls than on longer ones. Get your own quote against your exact pickup and delivery addresses rather than trusting a general estimate. Our guide to transporting a won vehicle explains what drives the price.

Walk the vehicle against the carrier's bill of lading at delivery, using your own pickup photos for comparison, and note any new damage directly on that document before you sign for it. The bill of lading is the paperwork a damage claim actually turns on, and a phone call the next day carries far less weight than a line the driver signed in front of you. See the full paperwork checklist in transporting a won vehicle.

Most recreational boats are titled by the state, the same office that titles a car, and the title will show any salvage brand from an insurance total loss. Larger vessels, generally over about 25 net tons, may instead carry federal documentation through the U.S. Coast Guard rather than a state title, with a different transfer process. Our guide to buying a boat at auction explains how to confirm which applies.

Yes, mostly from lenders, insurers, dealers and government fleets, through the same public platforms that sell cars and trucks, such as Copart, IAA and Ritchie Bros. for larger coaches. Water intrusion, roof and slide condition, and chassis recalls matter more than the odometer reading. Our guide to buying an RV at auction covers what to check before you bid.

Verify the product identification number, the hour meter reading, undercarriage or tire wear, and any hydraulic leaks, and confirm the attachment shown actually matches the machine's quick coupler. Buyer fee tiers and transport permits change the real cost meaningfully, so read the fee schedule and get a hauling quote first. Our guide to buying heavy equipment at auction covers the full inspection list.

Usually cheaper on the sticker, but an auction adds a buyer's premium, transport, and more risk since most lots sell as-is with no test drive and no dealer recourse. A dealership costs more but bundles reconditioning, financing and some legal protection into the price. Our comparison of auction versus dealership versus private party lines up all three side by side.

Rarely. Most auction sales are final and as-is, and platforms such as Cars & Bids state outright that bids are binding once placed. A small number of dealer-only platforms offer a short post-purchase guarantee window instead of a true return, which is the exception, not the rule. Read what recourse actually exists in dealer-only versus public auctions.

Type the platform's known address into your browser directly rather than clicking a link you were sent, and confirm the domain matches exactly, character for character. Real auction houses never ask for payment outside their own platform, by gift card or by cryptocurrency, and never pressure you to pay before you have a lot number and an invoice. Our guide to avoiding auction scams covers the full list of red flags.

Yes, if you miss the payment deadline badly enough. The platform can charge a relist fee, put the lot back up for sale, and on some platforms bill you the shortfall if the second sale brings in less money than yours did. Paying inside the stated window is the only way to avoid it. See how the sequence works in auction fees explained.

They should be, as long as you enter them only on the platform's own registration and checkout pages, never through a link sent by message or email. Platforms such as Cars & Bids and Bring a Trailer require two-factor authentication and billing verification precisely to protect that step. Our guide to avoiding auction scams covers the payment red flags to watch for.

Report the listing to the platform it is impersonating, file a complaint with the Federal Trade Commission, and if money has already changed hands, file a report with the FBI's Internet Crime Complaint Center (IC3) to create a formal record. None of these guarantee your money back, which is why verifying a platform before you pay matters more. Our guide to avoiding auction scams covers prevention in detail.