Brisbane
Car consignment, without the consignment fee.
Consignment means someone else sells your car for you. The difference is what they charge for it, a slice of your car's value, or a share of the extra they create above a number you set.
Car consignment is where a licensed seller advertises, shows and sells your vehicle on your behalf and takes a fee from the proceeds. You keep ownership until it sells. Traditional consignment charges a flat fee or a percentage of the whole sale price. TradeBeat instead takes a share only of what we achieve above the dealer offer you already hold, so if we do not beat it, you pay nothing.
How car consignment works
You hand the selling job to someone else while keeping ownership of the car. They photograph it, list it, field the enquiries, run the inspections and test drives, negotiate, and complete the sale and paperwork. When it sells, you are paid the proceeds less their fee.
In Queensland, selling a vehicle on someone else's behalf is a licensed activity. It must be done under a written agreement that sets out the terms before the car changes hands, and money held on your behalf is subject to the obligations that come with that licence.
What consignment normally costs
The usual structures are a flat fee, or a percentage of the total sale price, sometimes with advertising, detailing or storage charged separately. Two things are worth noticing about that.
First, a fee on the total sale price is payable on money you were always going to get. If a dealer offered you $30,000 and the consignment sale achieves $32,000, a percentage of $32,000 is being charged largely against value that already existed.
Second, that structure does not particularly reward a great result over a merely adequate one. The incentive is to sell the car, not to sell it for as much as possible.
How TradeBeat is structured differently
We do not charge a fee on your car's value. You get a dealer offer first, and that figure becomes your benchmark and your floor. We then sell the car, and we are paid only from what we achieve above that benchmark, split 50/50.
In the example above, a $30,000 benchmark and a $32,000 sale means $2,000 of new value, of which you keep $1,000 on top of your full $30,000. If we achieve $37,000, you keep $33,500. And if we cannot beat $30,000 at all, you pay nothing and keep your car.
The practical difference: traditional consignment asks you to pay someone to sell your car. We are asking for a share of money that did not exist until we created it. Every dollar we are paid is a dollar you would not have had by trading in.
What to check before consigning a car to anyone
- Is the operator appropriately licensed, and is there a written agreement?
- What is the minimum you will receive, and is it guaranteed in writing?
- Exactly how is the fee calculated, on the total price, or only on the upside?
- Who pays for advertising, photography, detailing and storage?
- How long does the arrangement run, and how do you end it?
- Who holds the proceeds, and how quickly are you paid after settlement?
- How is any finance owing on the vehicle paid out?
Consignment versus trading in versus selling it yourself
All three are legitimate and each suits a different person. Trading in is fastest and costs you the dealer's margin. Selling privately gets closest to retail and costs you your time. Consignment sits between them, and the fee structure decides how much of the difference you actually keep. Here is the full three-way comparison.
Car consignment in Brisbane: common questions
What is car consignment?
Car consignment is where you leave your vehicle with a licensed seller who advertises, shows and sells it on your behalf, then passes the proceeds to you less their fee. You keep ownership until it sells, the consignee never buys the car, they sell it for you.
In Queensland this is a regulated activity under motor dealing law, which means it must be done under the appropriate licence and a written consignment agreement.
How much does car consignment cost in Brisbane?
Traditional consignment is usually charged either as a flat fee or as a percentage of the total sale price, and it is generally payable on a successful sale regardless of what that sale achieves. Some operators also charge for advertising, detailing or storage on top.
TradeBeat works differently. We charge nothing on the value of your car. We are paid only from the amount achieved above a benchmark you set, your dealer offer, split 50/50. If we do not beat it, there is no fee at all. Full pricing here.
Is consignment better than trading in?
Financially it usually nets more than a trade-in, because the car is sold at retail rather than wholesale. It takes longer, and with traditional consignment the fee is payable whether the result was good or merely acceptable.
The structure matters as much as the headline rate. A percentage of the whole sale price is payable even if the sale barely beats what a dealer would have handed you on the spot. A share of the upside above a benchmark can only ever be paid out of money you would not otherwise have had. Compare all three options.
Is car consignment safe?
It is, provided you are dealing with a properly licensed operator under a written agreement. Before handing over a car, check that the agreement sets out the minimum you will receive, exactly how the fee is calculated, who pays for advertising, how long the arrangement runs, and how and when you get paid.
Be particularly clear on what happens to sale proceeds before they reach you, and on how any finance owing on the vehicle is paid out.
Can I consign a car that still has finance owing?
Yes. The financier's payout figure is obtained, the vehicle is confirmed clear on the PPSR before settlement, the financier is paid directly from the proceeds and you receive the balance. More detail here.
Before you trade it, TradeBeat it.
Get your dealer offer first. Then give us the chance to beat it. If we do not, you have lost nothing.