How to Write Out a Bill of Sale When Trading One Vehicle for Another
- 1). Check with a state motor vehicle office before completing a bill of sale on your own. Some states require that you complete an original form available only from a motor vehicle office. Also make sure that no special rules apply to vehicle trades.
- 2). Handwrite or type your form. Get your buyer's information, including name, driver's license number (if available), phone number and address. A driver's license number is good to have, but is not a requirement for a car purchase.
- 3). Find your vehicle's information on the title or an insurance card. You'll need to document both vehicle identification numbers, year, make and models.
- 4). Start the bill of sale with the date of the transaction followed by a statement of the vehicle trade with names included. For example, the first sentence should begin as "On May 3, 2011, I, John Doe, am trading my 2003 Volkswagen Jetta to Jane Smith for a 2003 Volkswagen Passat."
- 5). Follow up the sentence with a more accurate description of the vehicle and its value. For example, your next sentence should read "The 2003 Volkswagen Jetta's identification number is XXXX and the 2003 Volkswagen Passat's vehicle identification number is XXXX." The following sentence should discuss value: "The vehicles being traded have an equal value of $6,000."
- 6). State whether either vehicle has a warranty. In the event of a private sale, neither vehicle should have a warranty issued from a private seller, so the next sentence should read: "Both vehicles are traded as-is without a warranty."
- 7). Check on your vehicle's title to determine if you need to state the vehicle's odometer reading. Often, vehicles more than 10 years old are excluded from mileage reporting. You can add the mileage of both vehicles to the bill of sale wherever appropriate, although the vehicle's title will state it anyway.
- 8). And yours and your seller's information at the end of the bill of sale. Include relevant information about the buyer and seller beneath the name before signing. For example, complete the information as:
Jane Smith
10 Market Street
Somewhere, NY 12601
845-555-5555
Driver's License Number: 11111 - 9). Print or create two copies of the bill of sale. Each copy must contain signatures to make the bill of sale valid.
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