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Yes. I once worked for a dealer and all transactions over $10,000 had to be reported. Even if you walk in with a check from another lender, the dealer needs to report where the money came from to the IRS.
And, as an added layer of security to make sure you are who you say you are. Is it strictly required? Probably not. Will they let the sale walk out the door rather than CYA? Yes.
Were you asked to give your SSN to a dealer when buying without financing?
No.
When I went shopping for my Maserati last September, I told the dealer up front that I would be paying cash for the car. After negotiating the price, I went to my bank, had them make out a cashiers check made payable to the dealership, and then returned to the dealership and handed over the check. I was never asked for my SSN. Interestingly, I just pulled out the sales invoice and noticed that there was a space on the sheet for both my and my wife's SSN. In each space, the dealer just put the number "0" in and moved on to the next filed (DL #).
A few weeks later I leased a new Jaguar. In that instance I, of course, was required to provide my SSN.
If you put a freeze on your credit, you can give your SSN to anybody, anywhere, without concern that they will run your credit. It is also the #1 deterrent against identity theft, yet few opt to do it.
It will not affect your credit score. It will not affect your current credit (cards, loans, etc). It will affect future credit only insofar as you will need to "thaw" your credit at whichever ONE bureau the creditor uses. You get a PIN to do this. The cost is either free, or negligible.
Best part is, no one can ever again run your credit without your permission!
We just had an experience with buying 2 brand new cars in Dallas, both for cash.
1- the Cadillac SRX dealer required my husband's SSN and when asked for mine (cars each titled in both our names) I refused. That caused about 20 min delay in the process but the sale went on. We were told the IRS requires it, but since my DH had provided his we were ok.
2. the mini cooper dealer never asked for either! Which is good because I was prepared to refuse.
We just had an experience with buying 2 brand new cars in Dallas, both for cash.
1- the Cadillac SRX dealer required my husband's SSN and when asked for mine (cars each titled in both our names) I refused. That caused about 20 min delay in the process but the sale went on. We were told the IRS requires it, but since my DH had provided his we were ok.
That's not true unless you are actually paying with cash rather than a cashier's check. The IRS regs specifically state that the bank files the requisite form when a cashier's check is issued and that the dealership is not required to.
If a customer purchased a cashier's check at the bank for over $10,000, would the bank report the transaction? Does the seller of a vehicle need to report the transaction if the same cashier's check is subsequently used to purchase a vehicle?
If the cashier's check was purchased with cash exceeding $10,000, the bank would file a Currency Transaction Report (not a Form 8300).
The purchase of a vehicle with a cashier's check, bank draft, traveler's check or money order with a face amount of more than $10,000 is not treated as cash and a business does not have to file Form 8300 when it receives them.
You must have negotiated a really good deal on the car, if the dealer was willing to take it off the table for that reason alone. In that case, where the dealer actually wants to back out, I'd have yielded on the SSN.
Has it now reached the point in the Land of the Free, that one can't even transact the purchase of something as ordinary as a used car, without the Treasury Department needing to scrutinize that entry into the dossier kept on every citizen?
I buy cash but have always been asked for SS and have complied.
As I posted above, unless you're paying with actual cash money, there is no requirement or reason for you to provide your SSN to a dealer. Just because a business asks for it, that doesn't mean that they are entitled to it. On a related matter, I just returned from a medical appointment with a new doctor. The new patient form I was asked to fill out included a line asking for my SSN. I didn't provide it and no one in the office even asked about why I left the line blank. I have found that medical offices routinely request a patient's SSN and there is never a reason for them to have it. Consequently, I never provide it to them and it's never been an issue.
I went into a dealer to buy a vehicle. We reached agreement. I have pre-arranged financing through my own bank. They, however, still asked for a Social Security number from me. I declined to give it to the finance guy. He mentioned that the deal could not proceed. I told the finance guy that I am going to ask other car buyers if they were required to give their Soc. Sec. number. He mentioned that the vehicle and price would not be held. I said no rush.
My reasons for not giving out my SSN:
1. The dealer doesn't need to know my credit or credit score. They will be paid by my lender.
2. The dealer then has the right to share my SSN and personal information for marketing purposes. I don't have the right to limit their sharing.
3. They will pull a credit report without permission even if I tell them not to access it. This dings a credit score if too many inquiries in a short time period.
Were you asked to give your SSN to a dealer when buying without financing?
NO, NO, NO NO AND NO!
The SSN number of yours is FOR IRS PURPOSES ONLY!
Any time anyone BUT someone from the IRS asks for this number, it is AGAINST THE LAW!
It's not at all enforced, but check out the Social Security Act of 1965.
You were 100% within your rights to decline to give your SSN - to them or anyone else who's not a member of the IRS.
BRAVO! I only wish more people had your kind of sense!
I don't see a problem with giving it to them, with the explicit understanding that they are not to run your credit.
An explicit 'understanding' should be no less than a written agreement signed by both parties. If they want to run the credit score, make it costly for them.
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