Frequently asked questions

The Wreck Auctions is New Zealand's premier digital auction platform exclusively dedicated to vehicles. We connect buyers and sellers across the country using a transparent, real-time bidding system ensuring fair market value.

No. On our marketplace we're a technology platform and venue, not an auctioneer, dealer or agent. Every vehicle is listed by an independent seller, we don't own, inspect or warrant any of them, and after a sale the buyer and seller deal directly with each other. Wreck Cash is the exception: there, you sell your car to us (Wreck Cash), and if we later sell a car we bought that way, its listing says so.

In Auckland, New Zealand. The Wreck Auctions Ltd is a New Zealand registered business, and our support team is here Monday to Friday, 9am–5pm NZT (contact us).

Cars, motorcycles, boats, trucks and machinery, all listed by independent sellers. See what's on now on Browse.

Wrecky is the helper robot on our homepage (on a computer): a damaged little car that turns into a robot. It answers questions about buying and selling on The Wreck Auctions by finding the answer in our own information: this FAQ, our pages, the auction calendar and our fees. Wrecky is our own software, not an AI service, so what you type isn't sent to anyone else. It can't see your account, so check the listing and our Terms before you bid. It remembers your chat, and your first name if you tell it, on your own device only: use Forget me in the chat to clear it. If it can't answer a question, we save that question (not who asked) so we can add the answer to this FAQ.

No, creating an account to browse, watch and bid on vehicles is 100% free! You only pay when you list a vehicle to sell.

Sign up with your email on the sign-up page: it's free. You need an account to bid or to sell. Dealers can register as a dealer, and our team reviews each application.

On the sign-in page, choose Forgotten your password? and enter your email: we'll send you a link to reset it.

We use it to run the marketplace, verify your identity and protect against fraudulent listings or bids, share contact details between buyer and seller after a sale, send notifications (outbid alerts, auctions won, listing updates), answer a Wreck Cash request, process listing fees through Stripe, and improve the platform with anonymised analytics. We never use it for anything incompatible with why it was collected. More in our Privacy Policy.

We never sell, rent or trade your personal information. We share it only when we must: when an auction ends in a sale, the seller's name, phone and email go to the winning buyer, and the buyer's to the seller, so you can complete the sale; Stripe receives billing details to process listing fees; our database provider, Supabase, stores data in Australia; and we disclose information where the law requires it. A Wreck Cash request goes to our own team only. More in our Privacy Policy.

Sign in, open your Profile and choose Account and privacy. Under Privacy & data management you can export your personal data or delete your account: these are your rights under the Privacy Act 2020. Deleting is permanent, and it isn't possible while you have a live listing, bids on a live auction or a sale from the last 30 days.

Once registered, you can place a bid on any active auction. If someone outbids you, we will immediately send you a notification. The highest bidder at the close of the auction wins the vehicle, provided the reserve price has been met.

When you bid, you can set the most you're willing to pay. Our proxy auto-bid system then bids for you, only as much as it takes to keep you in the lead, up to your maximum. If someone else's bid reaches exactly your maximum, the auto-bid that was set first keeps the lead. Like every bid, it's legally binding.

No. Bids are legally binding offers to buy the vehicle at the bid price, which is why we ask you to confirm every bid. Taking back a bid isn't allowed except in exceptional circumstances, at our discretion (Terms section 4). If something has gone wrong, contact our team straight away.

That's our anti-sniping rule. When a bid lands in the last 2 minutes of an online auction, 2 more minutes are added to the clock, so everyone has a fair chance to bid back. Live Lane lots use a shorter window.

Some listings have a Buy Now price: you can buy the vehicle at that price straight away, instead of bidding. It's offered until the bidding meets the reserve or reaches the Buy Now price, and it isn't used on Live Lane lots. Buying now is as binding as winning the auction.

Our scheduled live auction: lots run one after another in real time, like a physical auction house, without leaving home. The auction calendar shows when the next one starts. To sell in it, list your vehicle and choose the Live Lane.

Yes. On the car's page, or in the Live Lane room's Next up card, set the most you're willing to pay. You can change or remove it until the lot starts. The moment it starts, we place it as an auto-bid at the next bid (the opening bid, unless an earlier one went first), and it bids for you up to your maximum, like an auto-bid set in the room. Auto-bids set early are placed in the order they were set, so with equal maximums the one set first keeps the lead. If your maximum is below the next bid when the lot starts, it isn't placed and we let you know. Once placed, it's a legally binding bid.

When you hold the highest bid as the auction ends (and the reserve is met), you are legally bound to complete the purchase. The seller's contact details appear in your Transactions dashboard straight away: contact them within 48 hours to arrange payment of the price and pickup. We don't charge buyers any fee.

No. Browsing, bidding and winning are free: The Wreck Auctions doesn't charge buyers any fee, premium or commission. You pay the seller the price of the vehicle, directly.

No, we don't arrange finance or loans. If you need finance, arrange it yourself before you bid: bids are legally binding. To check whether a vehicle itself has finance owing, look at its CarJam data and search the PPSR.

You pay the seller directly, by internet banking to their account (bank transfer is recommended). The Wreck Auctions doesn't take or hold the payment. Never pay with cash, cryptocurrency or gift cards to a seller you don't know, and see the vehicle before you pay.

No. The final payment for the vehicle, transfer of ownership notifications (with NZTA), and arranging shipping or pickup is strictly between the Buyer and the Seller.

With NZTA, when the vehicle changes hands: the buyer and the seller each complete their part of the transfer of vehicle ownership online at nzta.govt.nz. We don't do it for you (with Wreck Cash, we do it together with you).

Two ways. List it at auction: create a free account, then add the details and photos, set your start price, an optional reserve and how long the auction runs, and pay the listing fee (list a vehicle). Or sell it straight to us with Wreck Cash: we buy cars that are damaged, broken down, deregistered, have no WOF or are too expensive to fix.

Listing a vehicle requires a flat upfront listing fee, charged per auction. You will see the exact fee during the listing creation process, before you pay. If you choose to extend a listing, an extension fee applies, also shown before you pay. There's no success fee or commission when it sells, and buyers pay us nothing.

Not once the auction goes live, whether or not the vehicle sells, and even if the auction is cancelled. The same goes for extension fees. We don't use promo codes: from time to time a promotion may waive or discount listing and extension fees, and you'll see it when you list or extend (Terms section 3).

A reserve price is the hidden minimum amount you are willing to accept for your vehicle. If the auction ends and the highest bid is lower than your reserve price, the vehicle will not be sold.

You choose when you list the vehicle, from the lengths on the listing form (express auctions end faster). When a bid lands in the last 2 minutes, 2 more minutes are added to the clock.

The buyer pays you directly, by bank transfer (recommended). When the auction closes with a sale, the buyer's contact details appear in your Transactions dashboard: arrange payment with them, hand over the vehicle, and complete the NZTA ownership transfer together.

You must own the vehicle or be allowed to sell it for the owner, and your listing must be accurate and not misleading, including the odometer reading, condition, history and photos. Disclose any finance owing, write-off history, imported status and known defects. Registered Motor Vehicle Traders must also give the buyer a Consumer Information Notice (CIN) under the Motor Vehicle Sales Act 2003.

No. You can't bid on your own listing or have anyone bid for you: that's shill bidding, and it's illegal. Our system stops sellers bidding on their own listings, and accounts that shill bid are suspended or closed.

Yes. Register as a dealer and our team reviews your application. As a registered Motor Vehicle Trader, you give buyers a Consumer Information Notice (CIN), and the Consumer Guarantees Act and Fair Trading Act may apply to your sales.

Every vehicle's Number Plate and VIN are checked to assure the vehicle truly exists and its fundamental stats align with the NZ Transport Agency before the auction goes live. The listing form looks each vehicle up on CarJam and the PPSR. To prevent misuse, each member can look up 10 new vehicles a day (approved dealers 30); a vehicle that's already been looked up doesn't count.

Wreck Cash is our own service for buying cars directly. If your car is damaged, broken down, deregistered, has no WOF or is just too expensive to fix, send us its details on the Wreck Cash page and one of the team will get back to you with an offer.

No. When you list at auction, other members bid and you sell to the winning buyer. With Wreck Cash, you sell the car to us, at a price we agree with you.

No. Sending us your car’s details does not commit you, or us, to a sale. A sale only happens when we both agree the price, and we confirm it in writing before you hand over the car.

Our offer is based on the details you give us. If the car is not as described when we see it, we may change or withdraw the offer.

We confirm the price, and how and when you'll be paid, in writing before you hand over the car. We complete the change of ownership with NZTA together when the sale is done.

Tell us on the form. Any finance owing has to be cleared before ownership of the car passes to us.

The same as when you list a car: that you own it or are allowed to sell it for the owner, and that the details you give us are true. Giving false details breaches the Fair Trading Act 1986.

It is strongly recommended! Buyers should use the Q&A section on the listing to request an inspection or test drive from the seller before placing a bid. Remember: bidding is a legal commitment to buy.

Every listing shows CarJam data: check the odometer history, registration status and finance. Use the PPSR (Personal Property Securities Register) to check whether finance is owing before you buy, and look at the seller's public profile and reviews.

See and test drive the vehicle before you hand over money, and don't pay sight unseen. Check the CarJam data, and the PPSR for finance owing. Pay by internet banking, never with cryptocurrency, gift cards or cash to a seller you don't know, and check the seller's reviews before you bid.

If you are buying from a registered Motor Vehicle Trader, you are protected by the CGA and the Fair Trading Act. However, if you are purchasing a vehicle 'as is' from a private seller, these statutory guarantees do not apply. Please bid accordingly.

A dispute about a sale is between the buyer and the seller: we're not a dispute resolution service. Consumer NZ (consumer.org.nz) can advise you on your rights, the Motor Vehicle Disputes Tribunal hears disputes with trader sellers (up to $100,000), and the Disputes Tribunal (disputestribunal.govt.nz) private ones (up to $30,000). If a listing breaks our rules, use Report this listing on its page.