How to Sell a Used Car

Before you photograph it

Ten minutes here is worth more than anything else you will do. Buyers are deciding between your listing and someone else’s, and preparation is what visibly separates the two.

• Gather the V5C logbook, service history, MOT certificates and any receipts for major work. This pile is most of what a buyer is paying for.
• Note the mileage, MOT expiry date, number of previous keepers and whether there is any outstanding finance — finance must be settled or disclosed.
• Clean it properly inside and out, and photograph any dent, scratch or kerbed alloy rather than shooting around them.

The photographs that sell a car

Four photographs do almost all the work. Shoot in daylight, near a window, with the item against something plain — and do not use the flash, which flattens texture and hides exactly what buyers are trying to see.

1. Three-quarter front and rear, in daylight, on a clean background
2. The full interior including the driver’s seat and the dashboard with the mileage showing
3. The V5C and service history laid out, with personal details obscured
4. Every dent, scratch, kerbed wheel and worn tyre

Photograph the flaws too. It feels counterproductive, but a listing that shows the worst of an item gets fewer questions, fewer withdrawn offers and fewer arguments at handover. Buyers who can see the damage stop imagining something worse.

Writing the title and description

Make, model, variant, year and mileage: “Ford Fiesta 1.0 Titanium, 2018, 42,000 miles, MOT to Aug 2026”. Mileage and MOT date belong in the title because they are the first two filters. State the number of previous keepers — buyers ask immediately and volunteering it reads as confidence.

Then state these in the description, because a buyer who has to ask is a buyer who might not bother:

• Make, model, variant, engine size, fuel type and transmission
• Year, mileage, number of previous keepers and MOT expiry date
• Service history: full, partial or none, and whether main dealer or independent
• Any outstanding finance, and any known faults or advisories

What buyers will actually ask

You will receive the same three messages about a car. Answering them in the listing itself removes the back-and-forth, and answering them well when they do arrive is what turns an enquiry into a sale.

Pricing it so it actually sells

Start from the honest condition grade rather than the price you hope for. WishThrift listings use five grades — New with Tags, Like New, Good, Fair and For Parts — and what each grade means is worth reading before you choose, because grading up is the most expensive mistake sellers make. It does not raise the price; it produces a buyer who arrives expecting something else.

The car value guide prices all five grades for this item. Pick your grade, take the figure, and if you sit between two grades price toward the lower one. Items priced honestly sell faster than items priced hopefully, and on a free platform there is no fee eating the difference anyway.

What you keep, compared

On a £4,400 sale — roughly the middle of the range for a car — here is what the commission-charging platforms would take, and what you would keep on each:

Seller-side rates verified 26 Jul 2026 — Poshmark: 20% commission on sales of $15 and above; eBay: 13.6% final value fee, plus a per-order fee; Mercari: flat 10% selling fee; Etsy: 6.5% transaction fee, plus a listing fee and payment processing. Percentages are applied to the sterling figure above; the fixed per-order and processing charges those platforms add are quoted in their own currency and are not included here, so the real deductions are slightly larger. Full breakdown: marketplace selling fees compared.

Timing and getting it to the buyer

Steady, with a lift in spring and around the September plate change. Cars with a long MOT and full history sell within days; those with neither can sit for months.

This is where care matters most. WishThrift does not process or hold payment, so confirm the funds have cleared into your account before the keys or the V5C change hands — not a screenshot, not a pending transfer, cleared. Complete the V5C transfer with the licensing authority on the day, and keep a written record of the agreed price and mileage.

WishThrift does not process payments or arrange delivery — you and the buyer agree both directly — so confirm payment has cleared before the item leaves your hands, and keep the conversation on the site so there is a record of what was agreed.

Frequently asked questions

What paperwork do I need to sell a car privately?

The V5C logbook in your name, the service history, MOT certificates and receipts for any significant work. Any outstanding finance must be settled or clearly disclosed. Complete the transfer of ownership with the licensing authority on the day of sale.

How do I avoid being scammed selling a car?

Confirm cleared funds in your own account before releasing the keys or the logbook — a screenshot or a pending transfer is not payment. WishThrift does not process or hold payments, so this is entirely between you and the buyer. Meet in a public place, check the licence of anyone test driving, and never let a stranger drive off alone.

What is my used car worth?

Anywhere from a few hundred pounds to several thousand depending on make, age, mileage and history. See the car value guide for how condition and documentation move the figure.

See also: what a used car is worth · browse live vehicles listings · condition grades explained.