Buying guide
Commercial questions to settle before buying used equipment
Most disputes over used equipment are not about the equipment. They are about something both sides assumed and neither wrote down. These are the commercial points worth settling before money moves, whoever you are buying from.
VAT and invoicing
Establish before you agree a figure whether the seller is VAT registered and whether the quoted price includes VAT. For a VAT-registered buyer this changes the real cost, and a proper VAT invoice from the selling entity is what makes the position straightforward later.
Business asset sales, insolvency sales and sales by non-registered sellers do not all work the same way. This is a question for your accountant rather than for the seller, but it should be asked before the deal rather than after.
What is actually being warranted
- Is anything warranted at all, or is the sale as seen?
- If something is warranted, by whom, for how long, and what is the remedy?
- Does any manufacturer warranty still run, and does it transfer?
- Who bears the risk between payment and collection?
When title and risk pass
Agree explicitly at what point ownership transfers and at what point the equipment becomes your risk. These are not always the same moment, and the gap between payment, collection and arrival is exactly where losses fall through.
If a third-party haulier is involved, establish whose insurance covers the load in transit and to what limit.
What happens if it is not as described
Agree in advance what happens if the item does not match the description on arrival: return, partial refund, repair, or nothing. An agreement reached before anyone is disappointed is a negotiation; the same conversation afterwards is a dispute.