Bill of Sale
Everyone is familiarized with the paperwork one must go through when purchasing a new vehicle, there are a lot of forms to comply. During the last couple of years there have been some incidents when selling/buying a vehicle. Fraud, theft or simply mistakes are around the corner, and have led people to lose more money and waste their time trying to fix things up.
When buying or selling a car, the Florida Department of Highway Safety and Motor Vehicles (DHSMV) highly recommends that the owner and the new buyer protect themselves by filling up the Bill of Sale Document. Even though this paper is not legally required, and in any case it replaces the Title transfer, it is a very good choice to fill up the Bill of Sale to protect both parts of the transaction: The Buyer and the Seller.
The official name is “Notice of Sale and/or Bill of Sale for a Motor Vehicle, Mobile Home, Off-Highway Vehicle or Vessel”, and it can be downloaded from the DHSMV website. This paper is a very good backup to avoid possible problems in the near future.
What is the purpose of this paper?
The Bill of Sale is beneficial for both parts, as it protects the Seller and the Buyer. This paper serves as a proof of the transaction made and the transfer of responsibilities form one part to the other one.
At the moment of the sale, it is necessary that the current owner of the vehicle is the first one to complete this paper and sign it, before the buyer.
To correctly complete the form, the seller must include all the Vehicle details, the Certificate of title number, the current kilometer count of the vehicle, the personal information of both parts, the vehicle`s price and the current date.
Benefits for the Seller of the Vehicle
The Bill of Sale form protects you as the seller of the vehicle in any case, for example: if any infraction or new ticket arrives to you after you sold the vehicle, you will have no responsibility towards those infractions. This form works as proof of non responsibility over the sold vehicle.
Once the purchase is completed, you must notify the tax collector’s office (DMV Office), to inform them about the sale. Once the Florida Department of Highway Safety and Motor Vehicles is informed, they will proceed to cancel the registration of the vehicle under your name and keep the vehicle on hold until the buyer’s notification arrives. Once the new notification is received, they will register the vehicle under the buyers name.
Benefits for the Buyer of the Vehicle
The Bill of Sale also protects the buyer of the vehicle in case there is any infraction or ticket of the vehicle from the previous owner. It is a proof of non responsibility over the vehicle from the date of purchase backwards.
When the transaction has been completed, the Buyer should notify the purchase to the tax collector’s office. After this, the Florida Department of Highway Safety and Motor Vehicles will cancel the registration of the vehicle under the Seller’s name and register the vehicle under the new owner’s name. Bear in mind that in this stage of the purchase it will be required to pay the sales tax. If the Vehicle Registration, under the new owner, takes more than 30 days after the sale, it will be a penalty fee due to the late transfer.