Whether a farmer is a seller in search of quick cash or a buyer looking for a hot deal, ag equipment sales are increasingly taking place outside of traditional avenues. Great deals are available online, but the risks of scams or stolen property are high. Use common sense combined with legal best practices to enjoy the benefits of online deals without the risk.  

 “It always starts with common sense.” That’s National Agricultural Law Center expert Rusty Rumley’s best advice. “If it looks too good to be true, it probably is.” 

Identify Scams 

Once upon a time it might have been common for off-farm heirs to wade into auctions or private sales without a clue what their on-farm assets were worth; but today’s limitless availability of information means the pricing gap for anything offered online is slim.  

If a deal on sites like Craigslist or Facebook Marketplace seem just too good to be true, they probably are.  

“If you’re looking at a tractor that’s got a Blue Book value of $15,000, and these people are wanting to sell it for $1,500, that’s a red flag,” Rumley said. 

Vetting the poster, payment method and pricing can help farmers avoid an unsavvy sale. Ask these questions:  

Related:When equipment deals go bad

“Consider offering to use a credit card for these transactions,” Rumley said. “You have more rights to go back against a credit card company and get the money back than you do if you use cash. Once you hand them cash, that money is essentially gone.” 

Meeting in a location that works for both parties and a buyer willing to exchange enough information to create an accurate bill of sale are both indicators of a safe transaction. 

“Are you meeting the flesh and blood human being that's selling you equipment, or are they just saying, ‘Hey, there's a field out there. I'm going to give you the location. You show up. You look at the equipment and if you like it, you can just Venmo me the cash and load it up and take it?’” Rumley said. “Are they willing to meet you in person? If they're not, that's probably not a good +.” 

Do Due Diligence  

Equipment dealerships typically clarify a clear title before selling an implement or tractor to the general public. Likewise, if a piece of equipment is expensive enough to require a loan, the lending party will require documentation. In an open online marketplace, both buyer and seller are left to their own devices.  

“Where you start getting into more of the suspicious transactions is in some of your consignment auctions, where lots of different people bring in equipment from different venues, or online auctions, or Facebook, Craigslist, that kind of stuff,” Rumley said. “That's where there's more of a chance that you could be unknowingly buying stolen equipment.” 

Identifying a serial number is a good way to identify stolen equipment or equipment that has previously had serious insurance claims.  

“You can always contact your local law enforcement or a state police department or an auxiliary unit that's specifically geared towards crimes involving agriculture, equipment and livestock,” Rumley said. “They can do a quick serial number check and see if it's stolen, and can let you know before you go out there and purchase it.” 

Keep Documentation 

Once a serial number is identified, keeping record of that information can help farmers identify damaged or stolen equipment in case of emergency.  

“Document your serial numbers on your equipment. Don't just write down ’16-foot offset disk,’” Rumley said. “What's the brand? What's the serial number? If there's any unique features about it -you've replaced the hydraulic cylinders or you've done something else that's kind of eye-catching that makes it easy to identify. Keep good notes on that.” 

Keeping the information in a spreadsheet or other electronic location can help with a wide variety of farm book-work tasks. Estate planners, lenders, accountants will all need access to detailed equipment information. 

“Including that detailed information, plus the serial number in a bill of sale with the buyers’ name gives both the buyer and seller a paper trail in case of an emergency,” Rumley said. “A bill of sale doesn’t take a lot of information, but knowing the person's full name, and sometimes a driver's license number is also going to help. If the seller is not willing to show you their driver's license, it is probably not a good sign.” 

Proceed with Caution  

Falling for scams or losing cash money aren’t the only detrimental options for online equipment purchasers. Unknowingly buying stolen ag equipment can come with harsh penalties. 

“You don't want to be charged as knowingly being in possession of stolen items. It's actually especially bad in the ag context,” Rumley said. “It's not that uncommon for older ag laws to still be on the books. In some states someone might steal $1,500 laptop and it might be a misdemeanor. But someone steals a $1,500 steer and all of a sudden you may be talking about 8 to 10 years in the state prison.” 

Rumley said it’s not uncommon in traditional agriculture states for crimes involving livestock or agricultural equipment to have penalties much higher than the monetary equivalent of the goods. 

“A lot of states will also have built in a component for if the buyer reasonably should have known that they were buying stolen equipment,” Rumley said. “That can also lead to a buyer being charged. Even though you didn't technically know it was stolen, if you had enough evidence to reasonably assume that it was a stolen item that can get you in trouble as well.” 
If a buyer finds themselves in possession of stolen farm equipment or livestock, Rumley said cooperation is key.