If the idea of buying police-seized cars gives you thoughts of bullet-ridden criminal cars with smashed windshields, damages from crashes and bad tires, you've been watching too much TV. There are many reasons why police seize other people's properties, and they are not always related to some violent infractions against the law.
On the contrary, most police-seized cars are the result of repossessions because of failed loan payments, frauds, raids, DWLS (driving with license suspended) or drunken driving incidents. That means these cars were running at the time they were seized by police which is good news for you.
What to expect
Police-seized car auctions will require a nominal registration fee for bidders and each one will be given a bidder number. You can't participate in the bid if you don't have one.
Auctions for police-seized property attract a variety of people from young immigrants to locals looking for a good bargain to seasoned buyers and dealers. For the past few years, police-seized cars have been enjoying a rise in enthusiasm from buyers, so if you go to one, arrive early, come prepared and don't be overwhelmed by the crowd.
Try to be informed as much as possible before going in to bid. Get a Kelley blue book or some other used car price guide to help you compare trade-in values. Remember that you could be bidding against an experienced buyer and you could be going over your budget if you're not careful. The winning bid is not the final figure you'll be shelling out money for - you still need to pay a buyer's premium that could go from 5% to 15% of the winning bid.
Units on police-seized auctions are a mix of some bad ones and some really good quality stuff. Don't expect everything to be in spanking good condition just because they've been seized. Look for indications of wear and tear or for signs they have been driven at the time they were seized by police. A DWLS sign or sticker is a helpful indication.
Remember that police-seized cars may have been sitting in the lot or in some storage area collecting dust over some time and may have not experienced some maintenance work during this period. They might look good, but it's best to check the units as thoroughly as you can. If you can't make heads or tails of it, then bring someone who can.
Police-seized cars are sold on an 'as is' basis and come with no warranty or guarantees. You're not allowed to start them so you can't test drive them either. Better know what to look for than regret it later on.
Police-seized cars have a history, like most used cars do, but you might want to know exactly why. Get a copy of its repair history and try to find out why it's being auctioned off, if you can.
Subscribe to CarFax and run the seized unit through it to check its history. You might want to know who its previous owner was or if there are more than one. You might also want to know if the seized unit had been involved in any accidents so you can verify body damages, if there's any.
While some fairly decent cars can be had for a few hundred dollars, some really nice, newer ones can go up to five-digit figures. However, these prices are about 30-60% off their original price, still way below their fair market value and still a very good bargain.
For listings of police seized cars, please visit http://www.auto-car-auctions.info/
