What is an online car boot sale in the UK?

What is a Boot Sale in the app?

The in-app explainer calls a Boot Sale a virtual event. Nearby sellers list items together. Buyers browse and pay in the app, and sellers are paid in the app. You then arrange a time to hand the item over in person.

The event screen is more specific about the meeting. It says Boot Sale items are PIN Pickup only. You meet at the event, inspect the item, and share a 6-digit PIN. You can buy now, or make an offer where offers are enabled for that seller. Only active listings can be added to a stall.

Follow the place and the deadline shown on the event you opened. Do not invent a second meeting point. How Boot Sales work is on How Boot Sales work. Events appear on Boot Sales when sellers host them. This page does not say there is an event near you today.

SilentSale® Terms sections 7.7.1 and 15.6.1: a Boot Sale PIN Pickup must be completed by the deadline shown in the app, currently 24 hours after the event ends. That deadline cancels the order. Section 7.7.1(b): the buyer is refunded the item price, and the seller does not receive it. Section 15.6.2: the first recorded no-show is refunded in full. From an account’s second no-show, only the buyer’s SilentCover® contribution and any shipping cost are retained. The party who attended is refunded in full and is never penalised. Source

Who is holding my money, and is there cash?

No cash. The explainer says payment happens in the app before you meet, with Apple Pay, Google Pay or card, and that no cash changes hands. It also says there is no bank transfer between people who have not met.

Stripe holds the buyer’s payment after checkout. The explainer says SilentSale® never holds your money: it stays with Stripe until handover. The event screen says the same thing in shorter words: payment is held by Stripe, and it is released to the seller after the buyer confirms with the PIN.

The explainer says the seller is paid when the handover is confirmed, and that entering the PIN pays the seller. Those are the screen’s words. Read selling locally without cash and fake payment emails before you agree to a transfer outside the app. Facebook Marketplace compared is the local-listing comparison.

Stripe processes payments and holds funds until the order completes.

How does the PIN handover work?

PIN Pickup on a Boot Sale matches the rest of the app. The buyer checks the item and shares a 6-digit PIN. The seller enters it. The PIN is acceptance. There is no later dispute on a PIN Pickup.

The event screen says both sides have support before the handover, and that Stripe holds the payment until the PIN is confirmed. The explainer says every order includes equal support for buyer and seller, the same as anywhere on SilentSale®. That support is SilentCover®, a discretionary protection service. Each side contributes £0.30 + 3% of the item price (£0.60 each on a £10 item); the order screens show the amount in pounds.

The explainer also says both people are known to SilentSale®, rather than an anonymous post. Read do marketplaces protect sellers and collection-only items.

PIN Pickup is an in-person handover. The buyer inspects the item before sharing their six-digit PIN; the seller enters it in the app to complete the order. The PIN is acceptance. There is no shipping, tracking or post-handover dispute window.

Where do you meet, and what is the deadline?

The two screens do not use the same sentence, so this page will not pretend they do.

The event screen says: meet at the event, inspect, then share the PIN. You can finish before the event ends. If the PIN is not exchanged within 24 hours after the event ends, the buyer is automatically refunded. The screen shows a PIN Pickup deadline on the order.

The explainer says you arrange a time to hand the item over, and that you arrange a time and place that suits you both, because the payment is already held in the app.

The Terms, at sections 7.7.1 and 15.6.1, say a Boot Sale PIN Pickup must be completed by the deadline shown in the app, currently 24 hours after the event ends. That deadline cancels the order. The buyer gets the item price back. The seller does not receive the item price. Under section 15.6.2, the first recorded no-show is refunded in full. From an account’s second no-show, only the buyer’s SilentCover® contribution and any shipping cost are retained. The party who attended is refunded in full and is never penalised. Read the Terms.

Use the deadline and the place on the event. Do not add another meeting place of your own.

SilentSale® Terms sections 7.7.1 and 15.6.1: a Boot Sale PIN Pickup must be completed by the deadline shown in the app, currently 24 hours after the event ends. That deadline cancels the order. Section 7.7.1(b): the buyer is refunded the item price, and the seller does not receive it. Section 15.6.2: the first recorded no-show is refunded in full. From an account’s second no-show, only the buyer’s SilentCover® contribution and any shipping cost are retained. The party who attended is refunded in full and is never penalised. Source

When do Boot Sale events appear?

Boot Sale is available in the app. Events appear on Boot Sales when sellers host them. There is not always an event near you. How it works is explained on How Boot Sales work. A seller hosts one from Host a Boot Sale.

If you are not meeting at an event, ordinary PIN Pickup is described in how PIN Pickup works. Tracked Shipping has a 72-hour report window after delivery. That window is not the Boot Sale deadline.

Gumtree compared covers a different local-advert model.

For Shipping, report problems within 72 hours after confirmed delivery, or the collection scan for a locker or parcel-shop order. Confirming receipt closes the window early, so inspect first.