Money Moral Dilemma: Should I sell her my car?

Tulgey_Wood

Wow, is this really a real life dilemma?
The woman's obviously an idiot, and doesn't give a hoot about anybody except herself.
I would love to be able to shop all the arrogant self-centred selfish drivers that go around putting people lives in danger by driving without insurance (and licences!!)); to be able to do it AND sell them the car they get caught in at a hugely over-inflated price would be exquisite!

BNT

Morally, I'd have thought there is a big difference between not knowing if someone is properly insured to drive and knowing that he/she has no intention of taking out insurance. Just because one might sell a car wthout checking the documents of the buyer, doesn't mean that one should sell it if you already know the buyer intends to drive illegally.

Legally it would be her breaking the law, not you; but morally, do you want to be complicit in that?

Augustus_the_Strong

You should tell her that you don't think what she's planning is right, so you're not going to sell her the car. As someone said in an earlier post, she needs to grow up.

robisnow

As a technicality, how is driving without insurance dangerous?
Because i can't see how it is, it is simply an expenisve legality, made more costly by uninsured drivers! but it isn't more dangerous if someone on the road doesn't have it.
It is obviously illegal.

I can see how driving without ever having a license can be dangerous. However if they have had a license and simply misplaced it then they aren't any more dangerous then a normal road user are they?

Selling the car to this person wouldn't put a dangerous user on the road. You can buy a car without a license and without insurance, you just cant drive on the road... unless you own the land you are driving it on.

If this person bought the car and then drove it without any insurance or without a license then they are commiting a legal offence, they are not necessarily dangerous drivers as most of the previous arguments suggest.

If i were you, and i had a choice of buyers i wouldn't choose her. However if i had no choice of buyer, I would sell her the car but make her fully aware that to drive it on the road she would need an up to date license, insurance and have to keep the car taxed and mot'd.

mummyf

RuthnJasper wrote: »

Personally, I would not sell her the car if I knew she intended to use it illegally. Were an accident to happen you would be as liable as she was.

If you give an unlicenced person a gun - and they, knowingly and willingly, shoot another individual - you may as well have pulled the trigger yourself. You may not have been guilty of the actual crime - but you knowingly provided the means (the weapon).

Steer clear - and keep a clear conscience. If she chooses to break the law that is her business - but don't become a willing accomplice. If she is prepared to bypass the law, then she will incriminate you in a heartbeat if she thinks it'll help her. I can just hear it now: "Oh, but she sold me the car, Your Honour. She knew I wasn't a qualified driver but she MADE me take the car... she needed the money, I was doing HER a favour... she BEGGED me..."

On a personal level, I could never aid and abet this situation. You have plenty of easy get-outs, e.g. "I'd never sell a car to a friend, in case it broke down...", etc. My advice is to keep well away from this one.

Hope this helps. x

i totoally & utterly agree with the above, i couldnt have worded it any better myself

malibu_jenni

I bought my first car without having a lisence - that is not against the law! I was still learning at the time and bought the car from a friend who was selling it. It stayed in the house carpark until I passed my driving test.
You should sell your neighbour your car - I don't see why not!! Just remeber to fill in the forms correctly when changing ownership.

angelccc

Sell it.
What the buyer do with the car is none of your business. Would you ask for the driving licences and insurance if you sell your car through newspaper adverts?

Max_1066

Not sure about the moral question however the old saying "never sell cars to friends" holds true. If the car is £650 then its going to be a few years old and have a good chance of breaking down at some point. If you get on with your neighbour, or want to save the hassle I wouldn't sell it to her. Simply make up an excuse that its unreliable and that's why you're selling it. This solves the moral issue too.

Trunk_z

I read the first page, defiantly an interesting one.

I'd like to point out though that you can own a car without: road tax; insurance; MOT ; license

You don't actually need any of those to own a car. Using it on the road however, is a different matter.

Personally, I would never sell a vehicle to anyone I know, if it had a problem - even one caused by the new owner, I'd feel responsible.

angelccc

mummyf wrote: »

i totoally & utterly agree with the above, i couldnt have worded it any better myself

How about if I sell someone a screw driver and that person killed someone with it. Would I be held responsible ???