What to Do Immediately After Selling a Car

Immediately after the sale, sign and date the title as required in your state, give the buyer the documents needed to register the car, and keep copies of everything for your records. Record the sale date, purchase price, buyer’s information, vehicle identification number, and odometer reading on a bill of sale or other required form, even if your state does not require a bill of sale.

Check the product’s listed specifications when evaluating complete the paperwork.

Submit a notice of sale or release of liability to your state’s motor vehicle agency as soon as possible, following its deadline and instructions; transferring the title to the buyer does not always complete this separate step. Remove or transfer your license plates if your state requires it, and follow local rules for returning or canceling the registration rather than assuming the buyer will take care of it.

Make sure the payment has cleared or otherwise been verified, and keep your receipt or transaction records in case a question comes up later. If you still owed money on the car, confirm that the lender received the payoff and find out how the lien release and title will reach the buyer; our step-by-step guide to selling a financed car covers that situation in more detail.

Contact your insurer once the sale and transfer are complete to remove the car from your policy, and ask whether you are due a refund or need coverage for another vehicle. Cancel or transfer services connected to the car, such as toll accounts, parking permits, roadside assistance, and connected-vehicle subscriptions, and remove the vehicle from any apps that still have access to it.