When it comes to buying a car in Nigeria, you may be less than satisfied with your available options. While it’s true that there are multiple dealerships throughout the country that sell used and new vehicles, when dealerships are so focused on a specific brand of car, you may get frustrated trying to find the best deal. If you’re looking for the best deal on a car in Nigeria, you should consider shopping from an auto auction. Here are several tips to follow when buying an automobile on auction.
The first place to start when looking for cars for sale in Nigeria is actually a quick online search for cars available overseas. Doing this will give you a much broader range of cars to choose from, as you will be able to source from a variety of dealerships instead of the ones close to you. How are you able to do this as someone living in Nigeria? Through the import and export process, you’ll be able to have whatever vehicle you choose shipped overseas to you, even if it’s being purchased in America. Keep in mind when you’re looking for a good deal that import taxes (also known as import duties) will almost certainly be applied to your purchase, even if it occurs online. On average, the import tax in Nigeria is about 12 percent, but can range anywhere from 5 percent to 60 percent. As the import tax is a fee that you will most likely end up paying on top of the sale price of the car, it’s a good idea to save as much money as possible on your vehicle purchase. This is where an online automotive auction can really help you save money.
Automotive auctions are marketplaces where cars are sold via auction instead of through a traditional dealership model. In an automotive auction, you will be bidding on cars against other online shoppers, and at the end of the auction, the buyer with the highest bid will win the vehicle. Many times you’ll also need to pay a security deposit on the vehicle in order to begin bidding, although rules and regulations vary based on the auto auction website you are looking at. Many websites let you search for vehicles based on starting price, as well as the year they were made, the make, or model. This makes it easy for you to access tons of listings for cars for sale in Nigeria without ever leaving your home.
When it comes time to bid on any car, it’s important to make sure that you don’t let your emotions get the best of you. Oftentimes, an auction can be an exciting process, especially if you’ve held the lead on a car listing for a while and are competitive in nature. Remember, you aren’t bidding on a car just to win. You’ve come to an automotive auction site as a way to save money and gain access to a wider variety of vehicles than the dealers in Nigeria can offer.
Because of the potential to become focused only on winning, it’s vital that you read up on the car’s history, particularly its maintenance history. You’ll then want to cross-reference its condition with a database like Kelley Blue Book in order to determine what the car’s fair market value is. Once you’ve figured out what a fair price is, factor in any duties or other fees associated with getting the vehicle properly titled and registered in Nigeria, and set that as your maximum bid. Even if you’re tempted to go over that amount, recognize that there are plenty of other cars available to you online and that another good deal will come along.
No matter where you live, you want to get a good deal on a car. If you’re feeling underwhelmed by the vehicle options available from your local Nigerian dealerships, it may be worth searching for a car on an online car auction. With hundreds of available vehicles and the ability to import and export vehicles, you’re sure to find a car that runs great and saves you money, too.
image credit: Malte Lu
