Car repo after i sold on !!! help please

crystal_clear

Hi
I really dont know if this is the right board to ask my question in and if not then i am sorry.

I bought a used car 9 year old back at the begining of this year. It had some faults which I knew about so paid for them to be fixed. sent off to get log book in my name and M.o.t the car. A few months later I sold the car just breaking even.

This morning I have had a phone call from the person who bought it to say the repossession guys are there and taking the car from them.
They said apparently the car had a £1,000 loan/ hp attached to it from someone before me back in Sept last year and they only made 3 x £30 payments then nothing and now owe in excess of £7,000 so they are taking the car back.

I knew nothing of this and I had log book in my name for a few months before i sold on the car. I am devistated for the person I sold it to but really what can I do?.
They have been on to there solicitor and there solicitor says they should take me to small claims court.

Does anyone know if this is legal this repossession as i think maybe its a logbook loan if it is actually for the car.
Can the person I sold it to in good faith actually take me to small claims court to claim back there money ??

Any pointers in the direction of any answers would be great as I really just dont have any spare money to pay with. And should I be held responsible for some one elses deliberate fraud, having sold a car on knowing they have borrowed against it ( if this is the case ) .

Thanks for reading

Crystal clear

pinkshoes

Did you do an HPI check when you bought it? This would have told you if there was outstanding finance on the car.

Likewise, the person who bought it off you could have also done an HPI check, which was their responsibility... so as you sold it in good faith, there is not a lot they can do...

The court would ask them why they didn't do an HPI check.

myrnahaz

I agree with pinkshoes - you bought and sold it in good faith - it's the defaulter who should be taken to court.
Ring CAB or Trading Standards to see what advice they give you.
I'm sure it's illegal to sell a car that was bought on HP as it is actually owned by the HP company until the finance is cleared. Maybe your purchaser's solicitor is targeting you because you're an easy option.

Tozer

In theory, you are in breach of s.12 Sale of Goods Act which provides a warranty as to the title of the object being sold.

That said, you may have received good title (i.e. proper ownership) when you bought it. Google "Exceptions to the rule of nemo dat quod non habet".

You need advice from a lawyer who knows his stuff on this subject.

DVardysShadow

Do you have contact info for the person you bought from?

On the whole, I would pass this up the line to whoever you bought from, suggest to the person you sold to that you join in passing it up the line.

The_Pedant

Did you buy the car from a trader, or in a private sale?
If you bought from a trader, you are in a much better position as you would typically have retained title over the goods & the claim could then still be valid against the trader.

For a private sale, it's more tricky. Either way, you are better off seeking professional advice on this one.

crystal_clear

Ok in answer to some questions I dont have full answers as this was some time back.
From what I understand from the people i sold to told me . The car had a loan attached in september and only made 3 payments to this of £30 each. I bought the car in good faith from another person who had not sent off the log book as they had done a bit of damage to the gearbox and it was sat on there drive for weeks prior to me purchasing as they could not afford to repair it .
I bought in good faith from them receipt etc as you do, registered log book in my name repaired car and drove it a while but to be honest it was quite a thirsty car so I decided to sell.
I sold it Back in March /April receipted sale as you do, to only find out yesterday that someone previous had take a loan out in september last year for £1,000 now with outstanding balance its £7,000 plus they owe ( at this i assume it has to be a LOG BOOK LOAN) and from the initial owner as I was listed as the 2nd owner when in fact I was actually the 3rd that I know of and to top that I recently cleared out the receipts i had for the car as I sold on months ago.

But I can honestly say I knew nothing of the loan on the car and the same applies to the people i bought from and sold to they had no idea either. Why would you think a car 9 year old private sales ever had any finance on it when only 1 owner from new listed.
I dont know any car finace company that do above 5 years finance deals.

Like i said I feel really terrible for the people i sold on to but I really need to know what if anything they can make me liable for as they are threatening to take me on through small claims court.
I cannot afford to foot the bill as I am sure they cannot afford to lose there car. WHAT A MESS !!

Any help in the right direction would be great

Crystal clear

woody01

Tozer wrote: »

In theory, you are in breach of s.12 Sale of Goods Act which provides a warranty as to the title of the object being sold.

That said, you may have received good title (i.e. proper ownership) when you bought it. Google "Exceptions to the rule of nemo dat quod non habet".

You need advice from a lawyer who knows his stuff on this subject.

Rubbish.
Unless the seller was a business then the SOGA means squat.

Its facts like these (incorrect ones), that lead people in the wrong direction.

crystal_clear

woody01 wrote: »

Rubbish.
Unless the seller was a business then the SOGA means squat.

Its facts like these (incorrect ones), that lead people in the wrong direction.

No I was not nor am I in any business and apart from the initial purchaser at new the car had only ever had private sales after that some 8 years after 1st registration if the log book was any guide to go by.

Crystal Clear

smh36

Unfortunately, I think this is becoming a common scam -- at least I think I saw it reported on TV. What happens (roughly) is this...

1. Take out a log-book loan, you essentially sign the car over to them filling out the V5 as if it is a sale.

2. Apply for a replacement V5 from DVLA because you have `lost' the original. It seems that DVLA do only minimal checks and the new V5 is issued.

3. Sell the car on with the replacement V5.

Would an HPI check pick up the log-book loan to stop this type of thing happening?

woody01

crystal_clear wrote: »

No I was not nor am I in any business and apart from the initial purchaser at new the car had only ever had private sales after that some 8 years after 1st registration if the log book was any guide to go by.

Crystal Clear

If that is the case, then, and it was just a private sale between two people then the bloke who bought from you is lumbered im afraid.
(Not saying you are dodgy, but they could raise a private claim if they thought you knowingly sold a car with outstanding finance. It's paramount to fraud)

To be honest, even if you were a business, it wouldn't make thast much difference and SOGA still wouldn't apply.
It's up to the buyer to make HPI checks....not the seller. This would negate SOGA being used for a refund as physically, there would be nothing wrong with the car. SOGA certainly wouldn't cover outstanding finance anyway.

In theory, you are in breach of s.12 Sale of Goods Act which provides a warranty as to the title of the object being sold.

Did you make that up?
Personal sale = no warranty = No SOGA.

So...'In Theory', you are 100% incorrect.