My 88 year old mother asked her local garage to sell her car for her

[MrsSchadenfreude]

This was about eight months ago. They took it off her, as they said they were often asked to source small runaround cars. Hers was 15 years old and has very low mileage. They didn’t give her a receipt and have all the paperwork. She has phoned them several times to ask if they have sold the car and has been fobbed off - the person she needs to speak to is never there. She had some papers arrive re the sale/transfer of the car last week, and called the garage again to see what was going on. One of the men drove up IN HER CAR, took the papers and told her she would probably only get £70 for the car. She has never agreed a price - the man who took the car said he would call her and let her know what offers he got. I’ve looked online and she should get at least £800 for the car, potentially a lot more, given the mileage.

As they never gave her a receipt, it’s only her word against theirs, and they have all the paperwork, so where do we go from here, to get the money that they owe her? It’s a reputable garage and they have been servicing her cars for around thirty years.

I'd go and see the owner and give them 24 hours to return the car and all the paperwork or you'll be onto the police and all over the media. I'd record the conversation too.

Phone them yourself, insist on dealing with the owner, and ask WTF they think they are doing ripping off an old lady like this. If you don’t get a satisfactory response tell them you are going to the police and telling them the garage have defrauded your elderly mother/speaking to her solicitor to take action against them. And do both those things. Presumably the car is still under her name/they haven’t transferred ownership/she hasn’t signed it over?

Doesn’t the current owner have to sign over the new car, even if someone else has the paperwork?

If they’ve sent the paperwork off to the Dvla themselves for change of ownership that’s dodgy, can you go via the Dvla?

She said she hasn’t signed any DVLA papers or signed it over, but I suspect they have found a way round this - they just would have had to have forged her signature. The speed at which they appeared when she told them the papers had arrived makes me think they have done something dodgy.

I will call them and the DVLA tomorrow.

I would tell them you will give them a time period to return the car or actual money what it’s worth otherwise you’re going to the police and you will be reviewing them on social media which will affect their trade and hopefully cost them more than they got for the car .

Has the tax or MOT expired during that time? Have you checked on one of the apps to see if there's been a change of owner?

I wonder why a reputable garage she's used for years would have decided to rip her off, has it changed hands recently?

I assume you aren't neat enough to go to the garage, that would sort it out much more quickly than ringing the DVLA who presumably can't tell you anything as a third party.

I assume you aren't neat enough to go to the garage, that would sort it out much more quickly than ringing the DVLA who presumably can't tell you anything as a third party

The Dvla will know if the ownership documents have been submitted, and if the OPs mum hasn’t signed them that’s fraudulent.

I think as backup I’d call the Dvla first before the garage because if they have done that it backs you up.

You’re going to have to go to the garage.
I had bought a car from brand new in 2009, but two years in we were moving to Oz. I handed over the car and got a receipt and paperwork and waited for the money to transfer. I was in Oz and by this time hadn’t received a penny. I sent my df round to the garage and lo and behold the money was in my account the next day.
It needs someone to kick arse!

This is awful. I hope the DVLA help.

@LawnFever

I assume you aren't neat enough to go to the garage, that would sort it out much more quickly than ringing the DVLA who presumably can't tell you anything as a third party

The Dvla will know if the ownership documents have been submitted, and if the OPs mum hasn’t signed them that’s fraudulent.

I think as backup I’d call the Dvla first before the garage because if they have done that it backs you up.

Are you sure that you can just ring up the DVLA and get that information, I'm not sure that's something you can do. They won't be giving out that data over the phone, surely that would breach GDPR

You can get a date that the ownership last changed in 2 seconds online why wouldn't you do that? OK it's not going to be absolutely up to date but if it has changed you have that information.

Clearly the car hasn't left the garage as they turned up in it when they were contacted so if they have for some reason forged the mum's signature the car hasn't gone far

Definitely step in on her behalf

I don’t actually live in U.K. and due to Coronavirus, I haven’t seen my Mum for a year. I am with her this week and then have to go back. How do I check when the car changed hands?

Go to the garage, it sounds like they are taking advantage

So I have checked online and the keeper start date is 2009, when she bought it, and then it says last V5C issue date is this month - is this the transfer of owner?

She doesn't need to have signed anything for a change of keeper. As long as someone had the logbook with the serial number they can get the logbook reissued online to a new owner without any input from your mum. She would receive a confirmation from the DVLA in the post, a little slip of paper to confirm that the car is no longer in her name.

I wonder if the “paper she had from the DVLA” the other day was the confirmation that the car is no longer hers? She can’t remember what it said, but just called the garage and they picked it up. I will call them tomorrow.

The V5 doesn't signify the owner of the car. It says so at the top.

It sounds like it might be. The DVLA would be able to tell your mother if she was still the keeper but wouldn't be able to give any more information about who now owned the car. It might have been put 'into trade' with the DVLA. So the logbook would still physically have your mother's name on it but it would belong to a trader.

If you get nowhere with the garage I would involve the police and Trading Standards. They have stolen the car. They will have no proof that they have bought the car from your mother.

Threaten police and see what they say. I’d ask for the car back personally.

If report the car as stolen I think.

What model of car is it and how much is she expecting to get? Low mileage or not, it's 15 years old. I'm not saying the garage has communicated well but they may well be right - she might only get £70 for it. She did ask them to sell it!

Of course the car is worth more than £70! Even scrap value for a knackered non-drivable car would probably be £150 at least.

This is a low mileage 15 year old car that seems to be mechanically sound. OP has already said she has looked it up and it's worth at least £800.

They need to return the car now. If it's already sold, she needs to have a fair price. At the VERY, VERY least what WeBuyAnyCar would pay. That would still give the garage a profit for their trouble of selling it.

It really isn't £150 at the very least, and again, what make and model is it?

Even if it has to be scrapped, she should get more than £70 - especially if you go to the right place. I scrapped a 06 plate Vauxhall Meriva in 2017 and got £145.00 locally. Bought another one, same model but 58 plate - had to scrap it earlier this year as the clutch went. Got an online valuation of £298.00 from a national company who collected it within 5 days and paid via BACS the same day.

The company is www.redcorn.co.uk/

Super polite and efficient, they pick up all over the UK.