I advise against allowing ANY test rides; instead, a common (and safer) practice is to offer a buy-back of the bike within 15 minutes of the conclusion of the sale--provided the bike is not dropped, crashed, etc. by the new owner. A clause can be included in the bill of sale if the buyer so desires. Some states do not require a notarized bill of sale to transfer title (you'd have to check with your DMV), but if a buy-back clause is included, you'll definitely want to have one, complete with the date and time of the transaction. This way, the buyer can still be protected against any mechanical issues, while the seller is protected against the very real possibilities of crash/drop damage or theft.
When granted a test ride, the prospective buyer is not legally responsible for any damage to your motorcycle and, in the event of a mishap, can just walk away leaving you with a trashed bike. I purchased a 600 Hurricane from a guy who was in just such a position. He let a guy test ride the bike, the bike was crashed, and the guy just walked away. Prior to the crash, the owner was asking $2400; I bought it for $600.
As far as potential theft goes: a very good friend of mine had to sell his ZX-9 in order to buy a house. He felt he was taking all the necessary precautions--he arranged to meet all prospective buyers at a neutral, public location (a MacDonalds parking lot) and was determined not to allow any test rides. He met with a guy who said he really liked the bike but wanted to test ride it before buying. My buddy declined, but the guy pulled out $5,000 in cash--about 2/3 the asking price--to show that he was a serious buyer and offered up his car keys (to a new Altima) that my buddy could hold on to while the guy was on the bike (the guy did not turn over the cash).
30 minutes later, the guy is still gone, and my buddy calls the cops. Turns out, the guy was a known drug dealer, and the car belonged to one of his yuppie "clients" who let him take the car to go buy drugs (hence the $5K) and who promptly reported the car as stolen when the cops showed up looking for my buddy's bike.
Fortunately, the bike was insured, so my buddy came out OK and got his house, but the bike was never recovered.
I was asked by another friend to go along for his bike sale where the transaction took place in the bank parking lot with me sitting in the car with my friend's Glock 9mm beside me on the seat. Needless to say, THAT sale went off without a hitch. :smirk:
Arrange to meet all prospective buyers at a public location away from where you keep the bike--if you have them come to your house, instead of buying it then, they may decide to just come back later and steal it. Bike thieves will pose as buyers just to locate a particular bike and assess the bike's accessability. The parking lot of your bank is an excellent location--it's generally secure, you can have the bill of sale notarized, and deposit the money directly into your account so you're not walking around with it on your person.
So, that's it: arrange all meetings away from where you keep the bike and don't allow any test rides--offer a 15 minute buy-back instead. You may think it's overkill, but only until something goes wrong--and no legitimate buyer will have a problem with any of it. :waytogo:
