Eight cars bought, three arrived, five somewhere
Your used car buyer is out at an auction or on an online auction platform most weeks, buying to fill gaps. They know what they bought and what they paid. The office knows some of it, from the invoices that arrive by email. The transport company knows which cars it is collecting.
When the used car manager asks which cars are due this week, the answer comes from the buyer's notebook or phone. A car bought ten days ago has not arrived, and nobody booked its collection. Another arrived without its second key or V5C, and nobody knows whether they were ever sent.
Cars exist before they are in stock
The DMS usually starts tracking a car when it becomes stock. The days between purchase and arrival are a gap that each person fills in their own way.
- Purchases are recorded by the buyer in their own notes.
- Auction invoices arrive by email and are filed by accounts.
- Transport is booked by phone or email, sometimes late.
- Documents, keys and service books arrive separately.
When the buyer is busy or off, nobody else can see the full picture.
What the gap costs
Cars sit at auction sites or trade premises longer than needed, sometimes incurring storage charges. Cars arrive without paperwork, and chasing it delays preparation and sale. Occasionally a car is paid for twice or not at all because two systems disagree.
The used car manager also plans prep and forecourt space without knowing what is actually coming.
And the knowledge is fragile. Buyers are often experienced, independent-minded people who work in their own way. When they are on holiday, or leave, the list of what was bought, from whom and on what terms goes with them, and the office spends weeks piecing it together from invoices and transport emails.
How we build the buying log
- The buyer records each purchase on a phone as it happens: registration, source, price paid, fees and any notes.
- Vehicle details are pulled from the registration using your data service where it has an API, so the buyer types little.
- Auction invoices arriving by email are matched to purchases automatically, and mismatches are flagged for accounts.
- Each purchase has a checklist: paid, collection booked, collected, arrived, V5C received, keys, service book.
- Transport can be booked from the log, by email to your usual transport firms, and their updates recorded.
- When the car arrives, the stock record is created in your DMS from the log, and the car goes onto the prep board.
| Stage | Before | After |
|---|---|---|
| Purchase | Buyer's notebook | Logged on phone |
| Invoice | Filed by accounts | Matched to purchase |
| Collection | Booked when remembered | On the checklist |
| Documents and keys | Chased on arrival | Tracked per car |
Buying decisions stay entirely with your buyer. The log only records what was bought and follows it home.
Knowing what is coming
Everyone can see cars bought, in transit and due, not just the buyer. Missing documents are chased while the seller still remembers the car. The used car manager plans prep for the cars actually arriving this week. Accounts can see which invoices match which cars.
Is your buying tracked like this?
- Purchases are recorded in the buyer's notes.
- Cars sit at auction longer than necessary.
- Cars arrive without V5C, keys or service books.
- Accounts matches auction invoices by hand.
- Nobody else knows what is due this week.