Can You Buy a Used Car Online in BC and Have It Delivered? How It Works, Step by Step

1. Can you buy a used car online in BC and have it delivered?

Yes. A VSA-licensed dealer in BC can sell you a used car entirely at a distance: you pick the car from the listing, apply for financing, pay a deposit, e-sign the purchase agreement and have the car brought to your door. The dealer collects the tax; you finish ICBC registration and insurance with an Autoplan broker.

It suits people outside Metro Vancouver who would otherwise spend a day and a ferry fare on one car, people who know the model they want and would rather read a CARFAX than sit through a pitch, and people whose car has just died. Buying online does not remove the step where you check the car; it moves that step to your driveway.

2. The online process at a licensed BC dealer, step by step

The transaction runs on six steps, and at Spinny Cars every one can be done from your phone.

Spinny Cars process as published on spinny.ca, September 2026. Other dealers' deposit and delivery terms vary and must be given to you in writing.

Is an e-signed car contract legal in BC?

Yes. Section 11 of BC's Electronic Transactions Act states that "if there is a requirement under law for the signature of a person, that requirement is satisfied by an electronic signature," The Act's exclusions (wills, some powers of attorney, registrable land documents) do not touch a vehicle purchase agreement.

3. The paperwork that still has to happen (and the one form that needs ink)

Three things cannot be skipped because you bought online: the ICBC Transfer/Tax Form, registration in your name within 10 days, and Basic Autoplan insurance before the car is driven. The dealer collects PST and GST at the sale; an Autoplan broker handles the rest.

• Transfer/Tax Form (APV9T). ICBC's buying a used vehicle page is blunt: "you and the seller must complete and sign in full a transfer/tax form (electronic signatures are not accepted)." The e-signature covers the purchase agreement; the APV9T is signed in ink, usually at hand-over.
• Registration within 10 days. Section 17 of the Motor Vehicle Act requires the new owner to deliver the transfer notice to ICBC within 10 days, and ICBC's steps to buying a used vehicle say the same: register at an Autoplan broker within 10 days of purchase.
• Insurance before the first drive. ICBC's Basic Autoplan is "the mandatory coverage you need for a vehicle in B.C." and is sold through Autoplan brokers. Give a broker the VIN and purchase price before delivery day so the policy and plates are ready when the car arrives.
• Tax. A licensed dealer is a GST registrant, so it charges the tax on the sale. Bulletin PST 308 (revised August 2026) sets dealer-sale PST on passenger vehicles at 7% under $55,000, rising in tiers to 10% from $57,000 and 20% from $150,000, plus 5% GST. Private sales are 12% PST, collected by ICBC at registration, per ICBC's PST on vehicles page.
• Fees on the bill of sale. The VSA's dealer fees guidance says the advertised price "must be the total price" except taxes, and a documentation fee must be in the advertised price or clearly disclosed as additional. Since April 1, 2026, a $10 VSA Transaction Levy applies to every consumer sale; if the dealer passes it on, it must be itemized on the bill of sale.

Have ready on delivery day: your driver's licence, your broker's contact, a pen and the e-signed agreement open on your phone. The full document list is in our guide to used car paperwork in BC.

4. Delivery zones, timing, and what to check at hand-over

Delivery from our New Westminster showroom is free and same-day anywhere in New Westminster, usually next-day across Metro Vancouver, and within a couple of days in the Fraser Valley. For Vancouver Island, the Interior and the rest of Canada we arrange carrier transport, with the shipping cost quoted before you reserve.

The hand-over is your inspection, and you are not obliged to accept a car that does not match what you signed for.

1. Match the VIN on the dash plate and door sticker to the purchase agreement, the CARFAX and the APV9T.
2. Read the odometer against the listing and the declaration. A few dozen kilometres of delivery driving is normal; hundreds is a question.
3. Walk around with the listing photos open. Check each panel in daylight, all four tires and under the car for drips. Confirm both keys and the spare, then switch on everything from the screen to the heated seats.
4. Drive it. The VSA's buying used advice is at least 30 minutes on city streets and highway with the radio off. Ask for that drive before you sign the APV9T.
5. Compare the documents against the e-signed agreement. If anything is off, do not sign the transfer form; call the dealer while the driver is still there.

5. What if the car does not match the listing?

It depends on what is wrong. A car that is simply not what you hoped for is covered only by the dealer's exchange policy, because BC has no cooling-off period on a purchase. A misdescribed car is a legal matter, and the VSA enforces it.

The dealer's exchange policy

Spinny Assured includes a 7-day exchange privilege: an exchange for another Spinny Assured vehicle, subject to the exchange terms in your purchase agreement, not a cash refund. The VSA's buying guide is clear that "unlike a lease, there is no return or cooling-off period for the purchase or financing of a vehicle," and its vehicle returns page says any return window is dealer policy and must be in writing; read ours on the Spinny Assured page before you reserve.

Disclosure duties under the Motor Dealer Act

Section 23 of the Motor Dealer Act Regulation requires a dealer to declare in the written agreement any use as a taxi, police, emergency, lease or rental vehicle; any damage costing more than $2,000 to repair; whether it was brought into BC for sale; and whether the odometer is accurate. The VSA adds that rebuilt and stolen-and-recovered status must be disclosed. A false declaration on your e-signed agreement is a documented misrepresentation, the usual ground for undoing a sale.

Distance sales rules

A car bought online without inspecting it first is a distance sales contract under BC's Business Practices and Consumer Protection Act. The VSA's distance sales guidance says the dealer must disclose the description, total price, delivery arrangements and any cancellation, return, exchange and refund policies before you agree, and that if it fails to give you that information or a copy of the contract, or does not deliver within 30 days of the agreed date, you get a limited right to cancel with a full refund within 15 days. These are narrow rights, not a change-of-mind window. The Act was amended on August 1, 2026 (Consumer Protection BC summary), so check the current wording before relying on a deadline.

Complaint and compensation

The VSA's find help process runs in order: My Self-Help, the Connector tool to put the problem to the dealer in writing, then a formal complaint. The last resort is the Motor Dealer Customer Compensation Fund, which as of September 2026 pays a maximum of $20,000 per eligible loss to individuals who bought from a BC-licensed dealer for personal use, for losses such as an undelivered vehicle, an unpaid lien or dishonest conduct. You must first send a written Demand to Motor Dealer, and the transaction must be within four years of that demand.

6. Online dealer vs private online seller: the risk gap

Buying from a licensed dealer online and from a stranger on Facebook Marketplace or Craigslist look similar on a screen and are nothing alike in law. The VSA's curbers and private sales page puts it plainly: "your options are very limited if things go wrong and you've bought privately."

Sources: VSA, Motor Dealer Act Regulation s.23, Bulletin PST 308, ICBC. Tax shown for the under-$55,000 tier; full bands in PST on a used car in BC.

Curbers, the VSA's term for unlicensed dealers posing as private sellers, "may sell stolen, rebuilt or flood damaged vehicles without disclosure," and a seller who wants an e-transfer before you have seen the car is the classic online scam. Before sending anyone money, check them in the VSA licence search; ours is D50318. More in our Dealer vs Marketplace vs Craigslist comparison.

7. The online buyer's checklist