What Should Be Listed On A Bill Of Sale For A Car?

Filling out a bill of sale is always a good idea when purchasing or selling property, especially if it's valuable. It's particularly important to ensure that you get one when you buy a car, however, because you will need it when you register your car. If you have never filled out or received a bill of sale before, you might not know exactly what should be on it. Make sure that you include these things, and you shouldn't have any trouble when you request registry services for your new vehicle.

Make, Model and Year Model of Car

You will need to have a basic description of the vehicle that you are purchasing on your bill of sale, so make sure that the make, model and year model of the car are listed.

Vehicle Identification Number

Every vehicle has its own individual vehicle identification number, which allows it to be identified among a sea of other vehicles from the same manufacturer and model line. The vehicle identification number is probably located in a few places on your vehicle, but two of the most common places to look are on the dash in the area that is closest to the windshield and in the door jamb of the driver's door. Make sure that this number is listed on the bill of sale, and double-check it to make sure that it's correct before attempting to register your car.

Odometer Reading

The odometer reading for the vehicle should be listed on the bill of sale, and it should be as recent as possible. Although there will be some discrepancy between the number on the bill of sale and the number on the vehicle when you arrive at the registry service, they should be close. This is yet another identifying factor for your vehicle, plus it provides necessary information that can be used for tax valuation purposes.

Name and Address of Both Parties

Make sure that the name and address for both you and the person that you purchased the car from are listed on the bill of sale. This information will come in handy in case the other party needs to be contacted about something related to the vehicle, such as if all of the necessary registration information was not included.

You can download a bill of sale contract online, have one prepared by an attorney or prepare one yourself. Regardless, make sure that you have all of these things listed when you receive a bill of sale to help ensure that you don't have any problems when you register your car with a company like TLC The Licensing Company.