Selling Your Car in NZ: A Seller’s Checklist
Whether you sell to a private buyer, a dealer or a wrecker like us, the same few steps protect you. Use this checklist so nothing comes back to bite you after the car has gone.
1. Check you can sell it
You need to be the registered owner, or have their clear permission. If there is money owing on the car, the finance company may have a security interest in it, and the loan usually has to be paid out as part of the sale. You can check for money owing on the Personal Property Securities Register (PPSR). Tell any buyer about finance up front.
2. Get your paperwork together
- Photo ID (driver licence or passport)
- All keys and remotes
- Service records, and any WOF failure sheet
- Finance payout letter, if there’s a loan on the car
3. On the day of the sale
Get paid before the car leaves, or see the bank transfer land. Write down the buyer’s details and the date and time of the sale. Remove personal items, toll tags and parking permits.
4. Notify Waka Kotahi straight away
In New Zealand the seller must tell Waka Kotahi (NZTA) about the sale. You can do this online in a few minutes using the plate number and the buyer’s details. Until you do, fines and tolls on that plate can still be sent to you.
5. After the sale
Cancel or move your insurance, and update any automatic toll payment accounts. If you had personalised plates you want to keep, sort that out before the sale, not after.
Common questions
Do plates stay with the car when I sell it?
Standard plates stay with the vehicle. If you have personalised plates you want to keep, arrange to move them before you sell.
What if the buyer never registers the car in their name?
That’s why you should file your own seller notification with Waka Kotahi. It records that you no longer own the car from the date of sale.
Get an offer for your car today
WhatsApp us a few photos with the make, model, year and suburb. We reply with an offer, book a pickup, and pay you when we collect. 7 days, 7am – 8pm.