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[Ironingboard]

Hi looking for some advice, I want to buy a car but it has outstanding finance on it. I met the person who’s selling the car and seems genuine enough. They don’t have the money to clear the finance but needs to sell the car to pay off the debt, person was self employed and has hit a bad patch due to the credit crunch. Can understand the situation but I need some way of making sure I don't get burned if I buy this car, was thinking of using a solicitor as a trust to pay the amount for the car and have the car ownership transferred.  Any advice would be appreciated?

[Jimbob]

tricky......

youve no guarantee he will pay his debt...

so why not try and deal that you pay off the creditor instead of him, no worries then.

any left over, paid to him...
if any credit left....may still be awkward.

[mantahatch]

I don't really no the legal implications of this, but a friend was caught out on one of these a few years back.
The overiding factor in all of this is the that the finance company own the car, not the seller and not you the buyer.

I fear a solicitor will cost lots of money to handle this, is it possible for you to pay the finance company directly ?

At the end of the day "buyer beware"

HTH

Mike

[mantahatch]

tricky......

youve no guarantee he will pay his debt...

so why not try and deal that you pay off the creditor instead of him, no worries then.

any left over, paid to him...
if any credit left....may still be awkward.

Dam dam dam, must type faster 

[Mr Skrunts]

He may well be trying to raise cash before it is repossed.

Have a chat with HPI then may well give you some free advice and maybe even tell you where the money is owed and confirm the outstanding ammont.

My sister once bought a Pug from a dealer, I sussed straight away it had been repairwd, phoned HPI and FOC  I was told 3 dealers had HPI chechecked it and told me other onfo, I should have been charged for the info but she was a nice lady on the end of the phone, so some polite questions may gain you some free info. 

As allready mentioned any cash changeing hands needs to go to the finance company.  Plus you need to read and see his credit agreement, so your idea of using a solicitor is a good move.

Also ring up the likes of one of these car supermarkets and tell them you have a car for sale covered on finace, they may well tell you how they would proceed if they thought you were buying a car.    Cheeky again, I know, 

All the best with the deal if you proceed, please keep us informed.  Must be a nice car for all it's trouble.

[STMO999]

He may well be trying to raise cash before it is repossed.

Have a chat with HPI then may well give you some free advice and maybe even tell you where the money is owed and confirm the outstanding ammont.

My sister once bought a Pug from a dealer, I sussed straight away it had been repairwd, phoned HPI and FOC  I was told 3 dealers had HPI chechecked it and told me other onfo, I should have been charged for the info but she was a nice lady on the end of the phone, so some polite questions may gain you some free info. 

As allready mentioned any cash changeing hands needs to go to the finance company.  Plus you need to read and see his credit agreement, so your idea of using a solicitor is a good move.

Also ring up the likes of one of these car supermarkets and tell them you have a car for sale covered on finace, they may well tell you how they would proceed if they thought you were buying a car.    Cheeky again, I know, 

All the best with the deal if you proceed, please keep us informed.  Must be a nice car for all it's trouble.

Cant be reposessed if he's paid more than a third of the payments.

[Banjax]

apologise to the seller and walk away m8 

[tunnie]

walk away. Why bother? Its not as if the Omega is rare.

[waspy]

I don't know the in & out of the law, but i do know that if the car has outstanding finance & lets say you purchased it & it got written off in an accident, you wouldn't get the payout, the finance company does. I know this, because my x girlfiend's daughter bought one (unknowingly of course) & skidded on some black ice into another car. She lost the lot A learning curve for her, though an expensive one.

[Ironingboard]

Some sound advice, I mean at the end of the day I only care about buying a car with no strings attached. The car is stunning with only 20k on the clock and unfortunatly its not an Omega, can't get an Omega with only 20k on the clock these days :-(

[Dishevelled Den]

This might help;


https://www.hpicheck.com/newfrontend/glossary.jsp#_outstandingFinance



[b]Outstanding finance
Nearly two thirds of new vehicles sold every year are purchased using some form of finance agreement. Some of these agreements will grant the finance company an 'interest' (i.e. ownership) in the vehicle which you will need to ensure has been paid off by the previous keeper before you buy it. With over 7 million current finance agreements registered with HPI, you need to make sure that the car you are buying is not subject to one of them. If it is, you can use the details provided to contact the lender and determine the current status of the loan and any interest the finance company may have. For further information see Types of Finance and FAQ [/b]


http://www.motor-trade-insider.com/index.php/2009/09/new-statistics-confirm-car-buying-dangers/

http://www.contracthireandleasing.com/car-leasing-news/index.php/2009/10/05/police-endorse-fla-vehicle-recovery-scheme/

[Kevin Wood]

I would only consider this after writing to the finance company and receiving a full and final settlement figure with confirmation that, on payment, I have full title to the car.

The problem is, they would probably hide behind data protection and tell you they can't divulge that to a third party.


Kevin

[Ironingboard]

I would only consider this after writing to the finance company and receiving a full and final settlement figure with confirmation that, on payment, I have full title to the car.

The problem is, they would probably hide behind data protection and tell you they can't divulge that to a third party.


Kevin

Your right Kevin, when I done the HPI check I got the credit agreement number and company that the finance is with. When I phoned them up they said they could not give any specific details all they could give is that they are still have interest in the vehicle. Will give them a phone later on and discuss the situation with them, but at the end of the day they dont give a dam about the situation, all they want is their money.... fun times ahead

[Kevin Wood]

Yep, and the problem is that if you pay the seller, you just have to trust that he pays off the finance company and that they are happy and cancel their interest in the vehicle, which is not acceptable IMHO.

You are affectively buying it from the finance company, so you need to be able to deal with them directly and receive written confirmation that the car is yours.

Is he in arrears? Maybe you could present it to them as a way to get their money back.

It would have to be a special car for me not to just walk away, I must say.

Kevin

[trainastock]

a dealer has just took my car as px ,he needed a fax from finance company with settlement company first ,then i paid him cash for car and to settle finance , seemed like he does this all the time , if its a private deal do the same as dealer,
if your getting a bargain do it  if not walk away