Difficulties of transportation: How not to lose money when buying a car in Europe

In the conditions of an unstable situation in the car market, it has become more difficult to buy a coveted foreign car. Auto expert Denis Eremenko in an exclusive interview shared with 5-tv.ruwhat you need to know before buying a car from European countries.

Denis Eremenko
Expert in car selection, on the market since 2007

How to choose a car from the European Union

The easiest option is to contact sellers at a car selection company that sells and imports foreign cars into Russia. Most often they cooperate with intermediaries who overtake cars.

«These countries are a kind of financial transfer. Buyers transfer money for a car to the details of intermediaries, and they transfer money to the seller in Europe. Today in these countries there are no restrictions on the sale of cars, for example, to Armenia, Kazakhstan, Germany«, — explained the autoexpert.

Here is a step-by-step guide on the easiest way to buy a car from a European country.

1. Find the car you are interested in on the aggregator site. In Germany, this is Mobile.de, an analogue of Avto.ru. You can sort search results by cost and other filters.
2. Contact the seller and arrange payment via transfer from a euro account or through an intermediary company.
3. Pay the country’s mandatory VAT.
4. Agree on delivery through an intermediary company and check the legality of the documents being drawn up.

The seller needs to register the car for a citizen of the country in which the intermediary operates. For some time, the vehicle will be registered to the intermediate owner who is engaged in transportation. After customs clearance in a friendly country, the car can be imported into Russia.

I want a foreign car: What car can be driven from the EU to Russia for 2 million rubles

What cars come from Europe

The range of supplied machines depends primarily on the specifics of the market. Therefore, it is necessary to choose a car based on both your needs and the specifics of the market.

«We transport cars from Germany, from Holland, from Belgium. In principle, you can bring a car from any EU country. But, in my opinion, Germany has the best cars both in terms of condition and equipment, respectively, and in terms of cost.«, — said the auto expert.

• In Europe, you can buy mostly either diesel carsor «trains». It’s either «universal»or crossover German brand.
• Can be brought from Asia korean brand cars. A striking example is Hyundai;
• It is profitable to bring brand cars from the UAE Mitsubishi, Toyota. These machines are almost impossible to find in Europe because they are sold in single copies.

Difficulties in buying a car from Germany and other EU countries

The main difficulty is paying for the car. If you contact the selling company directly, then most likely they will refuse to sell the car due to the inability to accept payment. According to German unspoken laws, sellers today are prohibited from accepting payments from Russia — even if you transfer money to them using German bank details, they are obliged to return the funds to you.

How to bring a car to the Russian Federation from Belarus, Armenia and Kazakhstan, and how much does it cost

But you can still buy a car in Europe through intermediary firms located in third countries. It:

• Belarus;
• Lithuania;
• Poland;
• Kazakhstan;
• Armenia.

Today you can officially send money abroad by SWIFT transfer from your euro account. There are a number of banks through which you can pay for the car. To do this, you need to open an account in euros and deposit funds there (even rubles can be used). This money can be converted through the internal systems of the bank or through a brokerage settlement and officially sent abroad.

It should be borne in mind that the cost of transporting a car will increase. Buying a car abroad, the buyer faces risks, for example:

• The complexity of the return of VAT (value added tax — Ed.). Most cars in Europe have VAT — net value and gross value. Even if you agree with a Russian-speaking seller and transfer the gross value to him there, it will be problematic to return VAT due to the complexity of the translation.
• Problems with logistics. Long waits, high rates greatly affect the delivery time: if the deadline reaches two months, the buyer often refuses to purchase.
• Incidents during transportation and other risks, such as accidents.

Autoexpert warns: before concluding a deal to buy a car, carefully check the seller and the proposed vehicle. Otherwise, for the money you risk getting a «pig in a poke.»