SugarBaby Car Buying Advice

I'm buying my SB a new car. What is the best way to handle the transaction..title, insurance, etc.? She has no credit. Lol! It will be a gift.

My concern is if she wrecks it and injures someone, how can I best protect myself? Should I buy it in my name, insure it on my policy? Buy in her name? See if she can get insurance herself? To register one, proof of insurance is required.

Any thoughts?
ShysterJon's Avatar
Why not hand your SB the cash for her to buy a car and insurance? If you did that, I can't see how you could possibly be held liable if she injures someone or causes property damage while driving.

If your SB paid cash for the car, or made a down payment and banked the rest of what you gave her and made payments, that'd build her credit. She can buy car insurance herself, as anyone can. No one is uninsurable. It's only a matter of how much a person pays for insurance.
algrace's Avatar
I'm buying my SB a new car. What is the best way to handle the transaction..title, insurance, etc.? She has no credit. Lol! It will be a gift.

My concern is if she wrecks it and injures someone, how can I best protect myself? Should I buy it in my name, insure it on my policy? Buy in her name? See if she can get insurance herself? To register one, proof of insurance is required.

Any thoughts? Originally Posted by vscrtlvr
No credit - start with a used car, so long as the finance co reports back to the major bureaus she'll be establishing credit with 6-12 months of consistently current payments.

In most states, you have valid reason to be concerned with holding the asset in your name. Even with a personal umbrella policy, the potential risks present are likely going to outweigh the temporarily increased cost of her insuring the vehicle she owns until her creditworthiness leads to decreased coverage costs.
RandB fan's Avatar
I would buy a used Toyota or something very reliable and set aside about a grand to cover repairs, Have her title it in her name only, get insurance and tags and be done with it.
If you are interested in getting her credit established there are far better ways to do so. Take her to a bank with $1000 and buy a short term CD, then borrow against the CD and put that money in a savings account with auto withdrawal of payments. Should cost you a little change in interest but in the end you get the CD back to do it again. Do that a couple of times and she is set. Go see a real banker, do this twice and she has 2 bank loans under her belt instead of an expensive car loan that she may or may not make payments on as the cash may burn a hole in her purse.

Do not put your name on the car, period, do as you like on the CD
Just give her the car. Title and all. It's a gift after all...
Great info, folks. Thanks so much!! This section has always been a great resource to me and others..
Gotyour6's Avatar
Take her with you and have her sign the papers.

You lay out the cash.

Bought my girl a new car and that is how it went.

Bring the money in hundred dollar bills in a paper bag lol.
seanj317's Avatar
Please help me plan my retirement, you are awesome!
I would buy a used Toyota or something very reliable and set aside about a grand to cover repairs, Have her title it in her name only, get insurance and tags and be done with it.
If you are interested in getting her credit established there are far better ways to do so. Take her to a bank with $1000 and buy a short term CD, then borrow against the CD and put that money in a savings account with auto withdrawal of payments. Should cost you a little change in interest but in the end you get the CD back to do it again. Do that a couple of times and she is set. Go see a real banker, do this twice and she has 2 bank loans under her belt instead of an expensive car loan that she may or may not make payments on as the cash may burn a hole in her purse.

Do not put your name on the car, period, do as you like on the CD Originally Posted by RandB fan
omgnametaken's Avatar
Take her with you and have her sign the papers.

You lay out the cash.

Bought my girl a new car and that is how it went.

Bring the money in hundred dollar bills in a paper bag lol. Originally Posted by Gotyour6
Minus the paper bag, this is exactly what I did.
Be aware that if your cash payment is over $10,000, the car dealer is legally required to report that payment to the IRS via Form 8300.
RandB fan's Avatar
Minus the paper bag, this is exactly what I did. Originally Posted by omgnametaken
And if it was over 10k you might have it try to bite you in the ass. A really good attorney with good connections will check your financial activity during domestic litigation and that form 8300 will be on file at the dealer for 5 years and God knows how long at IRS. Once he finds that you're going into a roasting pan, so to speak.

You will be referring to her attorney in even more colorful term when he contacts the IRS for immunity for his client.... Once they review your files they will give it to her. You won't see them until after the divorce is finalized. She may even get the reward of up to 30% of what they get from you once she is done.

Buy her a piece of crap and save yourself lots of grief.
Think about it you can buy some nice wheels for under 10K.
After a while you can always upgrade by less than 10K and be free and clear.
Cloey Banks's Avatar
Just give her the car. Title and all. It's a gift after all.
I agree with this one
DallasRain's Avatar
Dont do it!

Seriously if its a legit enough sb/sd telationship then just get her a nice car paid in full and give her title...she should be the one to deal with her insurance

Good luck
Here is how I went about buying one for a previous SB.

I got on the Cars and Trucks section of Craigslist for my area, found a fairly used car that still had transferable manufacturer warranty left on it, contacted the owner (not a dealer) and asked if he'll be willing to have the car inspected by an independent inspector. Contacted the LemonSquad, www.lemonsquad.com, for a Premium Inspection of the vehicle. Lemon Squad is ASE Certified and BBB accredited. Once inspection is completed and passed, I met up with seller at a Barnes and Noble where the transaction was finalized (paid in cash). He signed his part on the title but I left the new owner section blank.

Called up SB, gave her the keys, title to sign the new owner section, and a loaded prepaid card enough to cover registration, tax and title fees, and one year of insurance. I just played the middle man - nothing leads back to me that I once "owned" the vehicle.

My SD/SB relationship was very much legit without a doubt but I will make sure as hell not to leave anything to chance/luck, that is leaving any sort of paper trail behind.

As for building her credit, a secured credit line will do the trick. Some bank offers secure credit cards from $300 - $10,000. Do your research as well, a few banks will allow the card to graduate or be unsecured once she builds her credit and qualifies for an unsecured line - she can keep the money that was held to secure the card in the first place. Win - Win for her. Most banks will not give back the money unless you close the account which could in turn hurt her credit again.