Underbook
Service scope and appraisal boundaries
Underbook specializes in one thing: vehicle appraisals that support BC private-sale PST, either before you register or as part of a refund after you’ve already paid. Here’s exactly what that covers, and when a specialist appraiser is the better fit.
Essential facts
- One purpose only: appraisals supporting BC private-sale vehicle PST.
- Not a collector, insurance, agreed-value, estate or restoration valuation service.
- Age or label alone never decides whether a vehicle fits.
- If it doesn’t fit, Underbook says so at no charge.
What Underbook is for
Underbook supports BC private-sale vehicle PST appraisals — either the pre-registration path if you haven’t registered your vehicle yet, or the refund-support path if you’ve already registered and paid. That narrow purpose is the whole business — not a general vehicle valuation service. The service itself is described in BC vehicle PST appraisals.
What Underbook doesn’t provide
Underbook does not provide collector-market, insurance, agreed-value, estate or restoration valuations. If you need a valuation for one of those purposes, a specialist in that specific area is the right choice — not a BC PST appraisal.
Classic and collector vehicles
Outside Underbook’s scope
Classic and collector-vehicle appraisals are outside Underbook’s service scope. When a vehicle’s value depends on collector demand, originality, restoration or rarity, a specialist appraiser is the right choice. The same is often true of exotic and heavily modified vehicles.
Age alone doesn’t make a vehicle a collector vehicle. An older, ordinary used vehicle bought privately in BC is reviewed like any other.
Transactions with different rules
Dealer or GST-registrant purchases, trade-ins, gifts, and imported or out-of-province transactions have different rules. Do not assume the ordinary BC private-sale comparison or this service applies. Some family gifts can be exempt; a paid appraisal is not an automatic requirement. Check the Ministry’s current vehicle bulletin and the relevant transaction requirements first. Underbook does not expand its service to cover an exception merely because a question involves a vehicle.
When Underbook says no
Review sometimes finds that proceeding wouldn’t help: the vehicle or situation falls outside what Underbook can support, or the evidence doesn’t point to a useful result. Underbook tells you so, at no charge, and never requests payment for an appraisal that wouldn’t help you.
When Canadian Black Book cannot determine an Average Wholesale Value under the applicable listing rules, the wholesale-value comparison does not apply. Underbook explains the result before any payment is requested and does not offer a paid appraisal report for that path.
This is separate from the classic and collector-vehicle boundary above.
No appraisal, tax or refund outcome is guaranteed. Underbook reviews your submission before requesting payment.
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