Five ways to sell
Most people selling a quad in the UK end up choosing between five routes:
- Facebook Marketplace and other classified sites
- eBay
- Farm and machinery auctions
- Dealer part-exchange
- Selling to a direct buyer, like us
Each trades money against time and risk in a different way. We're a direct buyer, so we have an interest here. We've tried to be fair anyway, including about where you'd get more money elsewhere.
| Route | Money | Speed | Your effort | Main risk |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Marketplace and classifieds | Often highest | Days to months | High | Time-wasters, scams, test rides |
| eBay | Can be high | About a week or more | Medium to high | Fees, non-paying bidders |
| Auction | Market price on the day | Next sale date | Medium | Commission, transport, no sale |
| Dealer part-ex | Trade price | Same visit | Low | Tied to buying from them |
| Direct buyer | Trade price | Offer within 24 hours | Low | Less than a strong private sale |
Facebook Marketplace and classifieds
Most private quads change hands locally on Facebook Marketplace or a classified site. It usually gets the highest price because you're selling straight to the person who'll ride it. Listing locally costs little or nothing, and the buyer can come and look.
The cost is your time. There's the advert to write and photos to take. Then come the messages. Plenty will be low offers, and some viewings end with nobody turning up.
Scams are common too, from fake payment screenshots to courier "collections". Before you list, read up on the scams aimed at quad sellers and how they work. A test ride carries a real risk that the quad doesn't come back. And strangers now know where you keep it.
eBay
eBay reaches buyers across the country. You can run an auction or set a fixed price.
That bigger audience helps with rarer or higher-value models. When two keen bidders want the same machine, an auction can push the price up. The sold listings are useful even if you never list: they show what similar quads actually went for.
Against that, vehicle listings have their own fees, so check eBay's current fees for your category before you list. Winning bidders sometimes don't pay or don't turn up. Distant buyers need the machine transported, which puts some off. You still have to handle the viewings and questions yourself, and take payment safely.
Entering it in a farm or machinery sale
Farm sales and machinery auctions sell quads and UTVs regularly, especially farm machines. So do online timed auctions.
The appeal is a room (or a website) full of people who came to buy machinery, and an auctioneer who handles the selling and the money. Tidy farm quads that are in demand can do well when several buyers compete.
What to weigh up before you enter:
- Seller's commission and entry fees come off the hammer price. Every auctioneer sets its own, so ask first.
- You'll usually have to get the quad there yourself, or pay someone to.
- You wait for the next sale date, then for payment after it.
- If it doesn't reach your reserve, it comes home with you.
- Tired or non-running machines can go cheaply.
Part-exchange at a quad dealer
Buying a new or newer quad? The dealer may take your old one in part-exchange. It's one visit and one deal. No strangers on your drive, and no payment to check.
The figure is a trade price, though. The dealer has to get your old quad ready and sell it on at a profit. It only works if you're buying from that dealer, and a generous part-ex can be balanced out by a smaller discount on the new machine. Many dealers are choosy about older machines, or makes they don't sell. Few want non-runners.
Selling to a direct buyer like us
A direct buyer makes you an offer. If you accept, they collect the quad and pay you. That's what we do. There's a fuller case on why sellers pick Off Road Buyers, but here are the pros and cons as fairly as we can put them.
In our favour
- An offer within 24 hours, based on your photos and description.
- Free collection from your yard or farm anywhere in Kent or London, and across the South East.
- The bank transfer lands before the quad is loaded, and you check it in your own banking app.
- Non-runners are fine. So are unregistered machines, with proof of purchase.
- Still paying it off? We clear the finance directly with your lender and send you the balance.
Against us
- We pay a trade price. A patient private sale of a desirable quad will usually get you more.
- The offer depends on the machine matching the description. If it doesn't, we'll explain what's changed. You can turn the new figure down without paying us a penny.
- We won't buy without ID and proof of ownership, and we check the frame number on every machine. If you can't show it's yours, we can't help.
- Outside Kent and the South East, collection is by arrangement.
Matching the route to your quad
Want the most money, and have the time? Sell privately. Learn the scams first. A rare or high-value model is where eBay's national audience can be worth the fees. For a tidy farm quad with a sale coming up, an auction can work well once you've costed the commission and the transport.
Buying new from a dealer? Ask for a part-ex figure, then compare it with other offers. And if you want it gone this week, or it doesn't run at all, a direct buyer is the least effort. Our guide to selling a quad that won't start covers the non-runner options.
Whichever route you pick
- Get the paperwork together. A registered quad needs its V5C and an unregistered one its purchase invoice. Service records help either way, and buyers ask for them on every route.
- Find the frame number. Serious buyers will check it matches the paperwork.
- Describe it honestly. A buyer who finds a hidden fault on the day will walk away or knock the price down.
- Hand it over only once the money's cleared. Log in to your bank yourself, because a forwarded screenshot proves nothing. Nor does a payment email, or a promise to pay later.
- Write a simple receipt with the date and the price on it. Add the frame number and both your names, and keep a copy each.
- If the quad is registered, tell the DVLA so you're no longer the keeper. Not sure whether yours is? Our guide to road-registered and off-road quads explains the difference.
Whatever you choose, know what your quad is worth first. Our quad valuation guide shows how to check real sold prices. A firm offer costs nothing either: ask us for a benchmark price and treat it as your floor, even if you end up selling elsewhere.