If purchasing a new automobile through a dealership isn’t your idea of how to get the best vehicle for your money, you might be an auto auction person. If you believe placing a bid on a vehicle at an independent auto auction is a better way to go, there a few things you should know before you get started with your research.

Auto auctions supply cars to body shops, insurance companies, car rental places, car dealerships, recyclers, and anyone else interested in purchasing a vehicle.

There are a number of different types of auto auctions, including salvage, wholesale, public, police, insurance, and online auctions.

Salvage auctions specialize in vehicles that have been wrecked; the car’s damages were repaired and then rebuilt, and they’re given a salvage title. Often the cars are high quality and come from insurance automotive and recreational salvage pools.

Wholesale auctions, which are open to only registered auto dealers, bring together wholesale buyers and sellers in a laid-back, friendly environment where bids are competitive and only licenses car dealers can make a bid. Online auto auctions connect buyers with vehicles through an auction with a sealed bid.

The highest in the stack of bids, which are confidential, will win the vehicle. Many auto auction’s web sites offer lists of available vehicles, from Buick to Chevrolet to Jeep and Mercedes Benz, and even sell cars that aren’t running.

Often, auto auctions feature vehicles in special auctions for buy-it-now prices or hard to find vehicles. Some auto auction services offer live broadcasts of each auto auction where a viewer can bid on a vehicle online, or via absentee ballot.

With auto auctions, the person selling the car is called a consignor. Thousands of cars per day often roll through an auction, being sold by individuals, rental car companies, licensed automotive dealers, and manufacturers, among others.

Sometimes auto body shop owners will use an auction as a place to get a great deal on a used or non-running vehicle to refurbish and turn around a profit. Some auto auctions provide towing services, and others have shops where vehicles can be inspected. In most cases, auto auctions’ rules state that any vehicles that were won during the auction immediately become the buyer’s property and have to be off the auction site within a certain, and short, amount of time.

Auto auctions are usually held starting at 10:00 a.m. every Saturday, 6:00 p.m. every Thursday, and at 6:00 p.m. on the second and fourth Wednesday of every month so that viewers and bidders can choose the time most suitable to their schedule.

Each auto auction has a set of rules, such as requiring a bidding card to make a bid, paying a deposit if you win the vehicle, and no warranties, refunds, or exchanges. Most of the time during auto auctions, an employee must be on hand to open a car’s hood, truck, and doors. Most auto auctions also make it clear that they offer no guarantees on any vehicles, and that there are possibilities that there could be problems with the vehicle you purchased.