How Selling Your Car to Us Works
Three steps, start to finish. Here is exactly what happens at each one, including the part most buyers do not put in writing.
Red Deer Car Buyers is a licensed and insured Red Deer car buying company that completes most vehicle purchases in three steps, with free towing and payment made before the vehicle is loaded.
How do I sell my car to Red Deer Car Buyers?
Send the year, make, model, kilometers and condition. Red Deer Car Buyers returns an offer the same day in most cases. If you accept, a driver comes to you, completes the Alberta ownership transfer on site, pays by cash or e-transfer, and tows the vehicle away free of charge.
The three steps
Tell us about the vehicle
Year, make, model, kilometers, and what is wrong with it. Two minutes on the form or on the phone. No diagnosis, repair estimate or inspection needed.
Get a firm cash offer
Same day in most cases. A number, not a range. No obligation to accept.
Free pickup, paid before we load
We come to you, complete the Alberta ownership transfer at the door, and pay by cash or e-transfer before the vehicle goes on the truck.
What actually happens at the door
This is the part almost nobody publishes, and it is the part people want to know.
The driver calls ahead
Usually thirty to sixty minutes out, so you are not waiting by a window for half a day.
They confirm the vehicle matches the description
Walk around, check the VIN against the paperwork, confirm the catalytic converter is present, confirm the engine and transmission are still in it. Two to five minutes. They are not looking for reasons to reduce the number.
You sign the bill of sale
Two copies, one stays with you. It records the vehicle, the date, the price and both parties. Keep yours.
You are paid
Cash or e-transfer, your choice, before anything is loaded. Not after. Not later that day. Not once it reaches the yard.
You remove your plates
They stay with you. Do not let anyone take the vehicle with your plates on it.
Take your belongings out
Check the glovebox, the center console, under the seats, the trunk and the spare tire well. Once it leaves, it is gone.
The vehicle is loaded and goes
Fifteen to thirty minutes total from arrival in most cases, longer if access is tight or it has been sitting long enough to have settled into the ground.
What we check, and what we do not
We check
We do not check
None of that changes the number, because it was priced into the offer when you described it.
What happens if the vehicle is not as described
The honest version, because this is the part that goes wrong at other buyers and pretending otherwise helps nobody.
If the difference is minor, the number does not change
More rust than mentioned, a dent nobody brought up, a flat tire. Priced in already.
If something material is missing, the number changes and we say so before touching the vehicle
Missing catalytic converter, missing engine, missing transmission, or a different vehicle to the one described. Those are the four that move an offer meaningfully, and the converter is by far the most common.
You are never obliged to accept a revised number. If the figure changes at the door and you would rather not sell, the driver leaves and nothing is owed. No call-out charge, no towing fee, no hard sell.
The way to avoid this entirely is to mention anything already removed when you first call. It takes one sentence and it means the number quoted is the number paid.
What you need to have ready
Very little, and none of it is needed for the quote.
If any of those is a problem, what to do about a lost registration or a lien covers that, along with estates and vehicles left behind by someone else.
I sold my car. What do I do now?
The step almost nobody explains, and the one that costs people money when they get it wrong.
Return your plates.
Take them to any Alberta registry office. Plates belong to you, not the vehicle.
Then cancel the insurance.
In that order. canceling before the plates are returned can complicate the file, and you may be owed a refund on the unused portion of the policy.
Keep your copy of the bill of sale.
It is your proof the vehicle left your hands on that date. Keep it for at least a year.
Check nothing is still attached to the vehicle.
Toll accounts, parking passes, remote start subscriptions, telematics.
Do not do any of this before the vehicle is gone and paid for. canceling insurance on a vehicle still sitting in your driveway is the most common sequencing mistake, and it is the one that occasionally turns into a real problem. how to register a motor vehicle in Alberta covers the registry process in detail.
How long the whole thing takes
| Stage | Typical |
|---|---|
| Submitting the details | 2 minutes |
| Getting the offer back | Same day, often within a couple of hours |
| Booking pickup | Same day or next, inside the coverage area |
| At the door | 15 to 30 minutes |
| Plates and insurance afterwards | One registry visit |
Quotes submitted between 8 PM and 8 AM get a callback first thing. Heavier vehicles, awkward access and acreage collections occasionally add a day.
Common questions about the process
Do I need to be there when you pick up the vehicle?
Yes, or someone with written authority and ID. Red Deer Car Buyers completes the ownership transfer and payment on site, both of which need the registered owner or documented authority. If you cannot be there, contact us ahead and we will explain what the substitute needs to bring.
When exactly do I get paid?
Before the vehicle is loaded. Red Deer Car Buyers pays by cash or e-transfer at the door, after the bill of sale is signed and before anything goes on the truck. Never after collection, never once it reaches a yard, never by cheque.
What if I change my mind after accepting the offer?
Nothing happens until the bill of sale is signed. Red Deer Car Buyers charges no cancellation fee, no call-out fee and no towing fee if you decide against selling, including if you change your mind while the driver is standing in your driveway.
Do I need to clean the car or take the plates off first?
Clean it only to the extent of removing your own belongings, and check the glovebox, console, trunk and spare tire well. Take the plates off before the vehicle leaves, or remove them at pickup. Red Deer Car Buyers does not require the vehicle washed, emptied or presentable.
Can someone else sell the vehicle on my behalf?
Yes, with written authority and photo ID. Alberta requires the registered owner or documented authority to transfer a vehicle, which also covers estates and power of attorney. Call Red Deer Car Buyers beforehand so the right paperwork is in hand and the pickup is not wasted.
What happens to my car after you take it?
It goes to a licensed Alberta recycler. Fluids and hazardous components are removed first, anything reusable is recovered, and the shell is crushed and separated into metals. Roughly 80 percent of a vehicle by weight is recoverable, and Red Deer Car Buyers processes every vehicle this way.
Start with step one
Tell us the year, make, model and what is wrong with it. Most offers come back the same day.
Open 8 AM to 8 PM, seven days. Quotes sent overnight get a callback first thing.