WeBuyAnyVan alternatives
Note: We Buy Any Van is not a commercial partner of Motorway. Last updated on the 11th of April 2024.
WeBuyAnyCar debuted as the UK’s first online car-buying service in 2006. Four years later, the site expanded into the van market with its sister service WeBuyAnyVan.
WeBuyAnyVan offers consumers free online valuation for their van as well as the opportunity to sell their van at one of the company’s branches across the UK.
Vans are in continual demand on the UK used car marketplace – which is good news, regardless of if you’re buying or selling your van. To help you make the best choice for your situation, we dive into WeBuyAnyVan and other van-selling services, before comparing them to Motorway’s fast, easy, and free platform.
- How to use webuyanyvan
- Instant online van buying companies
- How to sell your van privately
- Is Motorway the same as We Buy Any Van?
- Selling your van the Motorway way
How to use WeBuyAnyVan
We Buy Any Van is not a commercial partner of Motorway.
With the tagline ‘selling made simple,’ WeBuyAnyVan aims to provide a streamlined vehicle sales experience. Like WeBuyAnyCar, this parallel service provides sellers with an instant online valuation of their vehicle and a convenient on-site sales process.
WeBuyAnyVans helps drivers across the UK sell their vehicles without going through car dealerships or selling privately. The service buys a variety of vans, including those on finance, in need of repairs, less than six months left on their MOT certificate, SORN and import status, and private registration plates.
How it works
On webuyanyvan.com, sellers enter their van’s mileage and reg on the site’s homepage to receive an instant valuation for their vehicle, which is valid for four days.
If pleased with this valuation, sellers can then book an appointment at their nearest We Buy Any Van branch to have their vehicle assessed. A We Buy Any Van representative will confirm the vehicle’s condition and provide a final quote. Representatives will help sellers with all final paperwork and set up payment. We Buy Any Van will also help settle up any outstanding finances.
We Buy Any Van provides customers with flexibility throughout the sales process, allowing potential sellers to drive away at any stage. This no-hassle model allows customers, not salespeople, to be in the driver’s seat in every transaction.
Admin fees and payments
WeBuyAnyVan has a transaction fee that applies at the point of sale. Transaction fees vary as follows, depending on the final price of your vehicle:
- £0 transaction fee for vans valued below £99.99 (subject to minimum valuation of £50)
- £49.99 transaction fee for vans valued between £100 to £4,999.99
- £74.99 transaction fee for vans valued at £5,000 or more
There are additional, optional fees if you want to receive your payment faster than the standard processing time (4 working days):
- £24.75 for payment the next working day
- £29.75 for immediate, same-day payment (15 min or less for select customers)
Full details on all WeBuyAnyVan payment options can be found on the site’s terms and conditions page here.
Instant online van-buying companies
Today, there are many ways to sell your van online. Aside from WeBuyAnyVan, plenty of other companies offer to buy vehicles directly after providing instant valuations.
As you can expect, these instant-sale companies vary slightly. We chart the benefits of some of the most popular van-buying platforms:
| Company | Zero fees | Instant payment | Home pick-up | Dealers compete |
| WeWantAnyCar* | ✓ | ✓ | ||
| Money4YourMotors* | ✓ | ✓ | ||
| The Car Buying Group** | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | |
| Best Car Buyer** | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | |
| Evans Halshaw** | ✓ | |||
| Arnold Clark** | ✓ | |||
| Motorway | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ |
* Not a commercial partner of Motorway
** A commercial partner of Motorway
How it works
WeBuyAnyVan’s main competitors all start with the same basic service: instant online vehicle valuation. Many also provide instant payment for used vans, as well as home collection services.
Like WeBuyAnyVan, some of these companies have brick-and-mortar branches, or are associated with local car dealership franchises. Sellers are often asked to drop off their vehicles at these locations, rather than wait at home for a convenient pick up.
Admin fees and payments
As seen, WeBuyAnyVan only begins charging administration fees for cars that sell for over £100. For vans with a purchase price of £100 or more, there is a £49.99 transaction charge.
Money4YourMotors also omits administration fees for cars that sell for under £100. However, vehicles over that price accrue an administration charge of £125.
With fees constantly changing, be sure to do your homework before committing to a van-buying company.
How to sell your van privately
Instead of using a vehicle-buying service, another option could be to sell your van privately. While private sales can be a good way to snag a high price for your van, it is often a time-consuming process – with no guarantee of success.
How it works
First, you’ll need to find potential buyers. This could be someone you know, which would make the process a lot easier, but will most likely be a stranger. To attract buyers, you may need to advertise to the wider market. This could be online through a speciality site like AutoTrader or via free digital advertising sites like Gumtree or Facebook Marketplace. You could also go old school with print ads in your local newspaper.
Selling your van privately means that you are responsible for setting your price based off depreciation data. The best way to do that is to have a basic understanding of your van’s worth.
After getting your car in tip top shape, you’ll need to arrange test drives with potential buyers. Should they like your van, it’s negotiation time. Potential buyers are often looking to get more value for less, so haggling is likely in your future.
During this process, you may encounter time-wasters and hard negotiators, as well as people who nitpick every aspect of your vehicle in hopes of getting a better deal. With so many used vans on the market, buyers often have plenty of choice. Making your car as appealing as possible will help attract more drivers to your lot.
Private sales require organising payment to complete this transaction. Unlike working with certified car-buying companies, payment is not protected in private sales, so confirm receipt before letting your buyer drive off!
Admin fees and payments
How much it costs to privately sell your car depends on how many resources you use in the sales process. Taking out advertisements – whether in print or online – costs, as does professionally cleaning and maintenance.
Before deciding to sell your van privately, we advise researching and mapping out all potential costs so that you can get a full picture as to if this is the best financial move for you.
Is Motorway the same as We Buy Any Van?
No, Motorway is a different, independent service and not related to We Buy Any Van.
At Motorway, we:
- Do not buy your van. When using our platform, your vehicle sale is between you and the dealer, not you and Motorway.
- Offer vehicle profiling directly on your phone. Simply answer some key questions about your van’s spec and condition and snap a few photos to complete your van’s profile. There is no need to drive to any hubs for in-person inspections.
- Find the highest offer from over 5,000 verified dealers in our network which compete in our online daily sale to give you their best price. At the end of the sale, you’ll receive the best offer in your inbox.
- Provide free home collection. After you’ve approved your offer, enjoy free van collection at a time and place of your convenience, arranged with your buyer. During collection, the dealer checks over your car. If all is according to your profile, the dealer makes instant payment before driving off.
Selling your van the Motorway way
When you sell your van with Motorway, more than 5,000 dealers from across the country compete to give you their best price. Our services are completely free, and you can get an offer in as little as 24 hours. Even better: you can do it all – from getting an instant valuation to profiling your vehicle and confirming its sale – from the comfort of your couch.
Along the way, we provide helpful tips and tricks to help you get more money for your van. Once your sale is confirmed, you’ll get to enjoy free collection at a time and location of your choice and instant payment.
Is it time to sell your van?
Want to learn more about owning, maintaining, and selling your van? Check out more of our guides here, covering everything from finding buyers, to negotiating a good price, and completing payment safely.