Dispute over sold car

[BarbedBloom]

I would appreciate any advice on this, please.

We sold a car privately last night, but the buyer walked off with the whole V5 while I was looking for a pen (I know). We texted him to ask him to come back as he was only meant to keep the green bit, but had no response.

He had let us take his details before he took a test drive with my partner. Later he texted us to say he was happy with the car but didn't respond to v5 bit.

DVLA told us we could just transfer the car online as we had his details and the document reference number noted down, so we did and let the guy know. He has now gone mad as he said he was planning to sell the car on today and just transfer the v5 to him and now he can't and doesn't want the car in his name. We said that DVLA said legally we had to advise them we had sold the car and so we did.

He has said we have nothing with his signature on and he won't have the car in his name and he acts as a middleman (except he never said this and would be keeping any profit). He said that he doesn't care if he has done anything illegal and if he gets the logbook he will just transfer it back into our name and get a load of speeding fines. We have this in a text message.

We have offered to take the car back once he had the logbook and signs it back to us, as DVLA advised, but we are just getting a lot of abuse about how he has done this loads of times before and we have just messed it all up for him. He says if he disputes ownership it will all go to court, but the problem is that we are moving abroad next month.

This is a total nightmare and I wondered if anyone could advise where we stand legally, DVLA state he is now the legal owner and anything else is a civil matter and we should just offer to take the car back once he has the v5 - which we have already done.

What a mess.

[Collaborate]

Presumably you have the money for the car. I'd refuse to take it back. why should you ?

[BarbedBloom]

Thanks for responding.

Our concern is we don't know what he has done to it since he has had it and we have little faith in him since he has admitted via text that he intended to pretend to be my partner to sell the car to the other person and that he has done this numerous times before.

I am just wondering what happens if he gets the log book and transfers it back into my partner's name and then does illegal stuff with it. To transfer ownership online you only need the v5 ref number and the address, which he has from picking up the car.

Wish we had just scrapped the thing now!

[Mrsdarcyiwish10]

I think you should let the police know, him pretending to be your husband is fraud and he is running a car selling business and not paying any tax i would imagine.

[pho3be]

Police

[Cheerybigbottom]

I'd advise you to speak to the police. He's threatening you and admitted illegal activity, you don't need to go through this on your own. Get police involved.

[BarbedBloom]

Thank you everyone. We will contact our local police department.

[Reality16]

Don't waste police time. The guy is highly unlikely to transfer the registered keeper back to you, and even if he did you would be aware as the dvla would send you a new document. You have notified the dvla, thats all you are required to do. You have the money, he has the car, deal done.

[BarbedBloom]

If he did transfer the car back to us, can we dispute that? That was all we were really worried about as DVLA have confirmed it is now his car.

We will contact the police should he continue threatening us. I wouldn't bother them over the civil parts of this as that isn't their responsibility

[Reality16]

Of course you can, but he isn't going to, that would leave him with a car he couldn't do anything with.

[BarbedBloom]

Thanks. That is what we figured, especially as he has apparently done work on it already. I appreciate the advice

[Reality16]

The v5 only shows registered keeper anyway, it's nothing to do with ownership. However if he was stupid enough to transfer it back to you he would give himself a nightmare with trying to tax it or sell it on, very very very unlikely he would be that stupid.

[RebootYourEngine]

I would contact your local police. He is being threatening and saying that he is going to commit fraud.

[BarbedBloom]

It is quite a stressful time for us what with moving abroad next month so we just wanted to be sure where we stood if he was vindictive enough to try and screw us over.

Really appreciate all the advice

[OSETmum]

If you're moving abroad anyway, I wouldn't give it a second thought. You'll be long gone by the time any fines come through! There must be some way of showing that he's lying or anyone could do that when they bought a car.

[BarbedBloom]

Well we do have his text messages where he says he bought the car, then says we have nothing with his signature on so now he can say he didn't buy it, but then says he has already got an MOT done on it and done work ready to sell it. Then saying he was just going to pass our v5 onto new buyer as my partner. Then how he has a car business he hasn't declared and doesn't care if it is illegal and that the address on his license isn't his current address anyway, which DVLA said is an offence. Then finally saying he will transfer it to us and get a load of fines. So, if all this goes to hell then hopefully this text message string will demonstrate all that has happened

[ScruffyTheJanitor]

How is reporting a criminal to the police wasting their time?

Pop into the local station, show them the messages, they'll decide what, if any, action to take.

[Reality16]

How is reporting a criminal to the police wasting their time? he hasn't done anything wrong? Minor threats about how he will register the car back to the OP isn't exactly law breaking is it?

[ATruthUniversallyAcknowledged]

Have you contacted police? What do they advise?

[childmaintenanceserviceinquiry]

please go and speak to your local police. It is often a car offence that triggers discovery of further criminal activity. This man clearly doesnt wish to comply with even minor legal requirements, so what else is going on.

If he is running a business and masquerading as a private person for sales, again that is a trigger for non compliance with particularly tax requirements. So do contact HMRC hotline with the details you have. You can do that anonymously if you wish.

that would be doing the local community a favour.

[mirokarikovo]

I think the police would be interested.

since he has admitted via text that he intended to pretend to be my partner to sell the car to the other person and that he has done this numerous times before.

Obviously it's not an emergency-call-999 crime but it is still crime. The police like to have occasional crimes reported which they don't have to risk their own lives to apprehend the criminals and where they already have a confession. Very helpful for their statistics.

[SoFedUpOfPeople]

I would speak to the police. What a nightmare!

[prh47bridge]

he hasn't done anything wrong

Really? Have you actually read the thread?

He has admitted that he intended to pass himself off as the OP's partner, that he is a car dealer who pretends to be a private seller and that his driving license has a false address. The threat to change the registration back to the OP and then deliberately incur fines for traffic offences may be an offence on its own, regardless of whether or not he carries it out.

Definitely speak to the police, BarbedBloom. You should also speak to your local trading standards office. They will be interested if he is acting as a car dealer while pretending to be a private seller.

[PuntCuffin]

Surely if he tried to transfer it back to you at this point, the new V5 would get sent to you so he wouldn't be able to sell it on to anyone else?

[BarbedBloom]

Thanks all. Sorry to disappear for a while. We did quickly speak to the local police earlier in the end as I am a bit nervous about the threats he made and would prefer them logged in some manner. They have asked us to pop in tomorrow with a copy of the messages and they will have a chat with us while they have a look at them.

I have asked for this thread to be deleted as it has a lot of identifying info in it but I will update in another thread.

[Reality16]

Yes really.

he intended to

At this point he has done nothing.

Intending to pass himself off as the partner is a simple way to sell the car on asap instead of having to wait for official paperwork arriving. But he hasn't done that.