Under CIF terms, the beneficiary of the insurance policy will be endorsed to the buyer. Once the claim is successful, the insurance company's foreign currency compensation will be directly deposited into the buyer's designated overseas company or personal account.

A typical payment structure looks like this: 1. Deposit: 10-30% after you confirm the car and price, often to reserve the vehicle and start the inspection. 2. Balance: paid after you approve the inspection report, but before or at shipment. A common safeguard is paying against a copy of the bill of lading, with telex release of the original B/L after funds arrive. 3. Never send 100% upfront to a new supplier. Use traceable methods (T/T bank transfer to a corporate account matching the company name, or escrow for first orders) and keep every agreement in writing. 4. Timeline: quote within days, inspection 3-7 days, booking and loading 1-2 weeks, ocean transit 3-6 weeks, customs clearance 3-10 days. Red flags: personal bank accounts, pressure to skip inspection, prices far below market.

You can watch the car through live streaming or VR, or entrust a local third-party agency to inspect the car for you. Transparency about the car's condition is the foundation of trust.