Three kinds of sale, three different answers
| Who is selling to whom | What “sold as seen” does |
|---|---|
| Private individual to private individual | Describes the deal. The buyer's main protection is that the car must be as described and the seller must own it. Condition is the buyer's risk once they have looked. |
| Dealer to another business | Can form part of the agreed contract terms between two businesses. Misdescription is still not allowed. |
| Dealer to a consumer | Does not remove the consumer's rights. GOV.UK says it is illegal to restrict or take away those rights or to mislead customers about them. |
What GOV.UK says about dealer sales to consumers
The government's page on accepting returns and giving refunds says a business “must offer a full refund if an item is faulty, not as described or does not do what it's supposed to”, that a business must repair or replace an item returned within six months unless it can prove the item was not faulty at purchase, and that “it's illegal to restrict or take away customers' rights or to mislead them about their rights, for example by displaying a sign that says you do not accept returns or offer refunds”. Printing “sold as seen, no refunds” on a consumer invoice is that kind of statement.
What a dealer can do is describe the car accurately. Advisories on the last MOT, a known fault the buyer has agreed to accept at a reduced price, the mileage and its history, and what warranty is or is not included. A buyer who was told about a fault before purchase has a weaker claim about that fault than one who was not.
Writing the receipt in DealerSlip
- Vehicle. Enter the registration, mileage and MOT expiry as they are. Do not round the mileage.
- Price. Enter the agreed price. If a known fault led to a reduced price, say so in the terms rather than hiding it in the figure.
- Warranty & terms. Open Payment → Invoice details & notes. For a consumer sale, describe what was disclosed and what warranty applies. For a trade sale, state that the buyer is a business purchasing in the course of trade and has inspected the vehicle.
- Payments. Record what was received and how. The Payment receipt page shows the total received and any balance.
Example wording for a disclosed fault on a consumer sale. Adapt it to the facts and take your own advice on terms.
“The buyer was told before purchase that the air conditioning does not blow cold and that the last MOT recorded an advisory for a worn front nearside tyre. The price was agreed on that basis. Statutory rights are not affected.”
Example wording for a trade sale between two dealers.
“Trade sale. The buyer is purchasing in the course of business, has inspected the vehicle and accepts it in its current condition. No warranty is given or implied by the seller.”
Private sellers
DealerSlip is built around dealership details, part exchanges and VAT options, so it is not the right fit for a one-off private sale. A private receipt should still record both parties, the registration, mileage, price, payment method, the date and a line confirming the car is sold as described, signed by both.
Common questions
Can I put “sold as seen” on a dealer invoice to a consumer at all?
The phrase itself is not the problem; misleading a consumer about their rights is. A receipt that says “sold as seen, statutory rights not affected” alongside an honest description is a different document from one that says “no refunds”. If you rely on such wording, get it checked.
Does a signed receipt prove the buyer inspected the car?
A signature line records agreement to the document. Whether it proves an inspection depends on what the document says. The DealerSlip signature lines are blank lines for both parties.
Does DealerSlip decide whether my terms are enforceable?
No. It prints the terms you type. The examples on this page are illustrations, not templates approved by a solicitor.