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kelsey_legros

Hi,
Last year my parents sold my car (but it was registered under one of their names) to a lady who was struggling. So In order to help her out, they said she could just slowly pay it off. However, a year later she has only made one small payment of $100 (I think the total was around $1000). Recently, they have tried to message her about the payments. She texted them back saying “it’s my car now I don’t have to pay for anything”. They changed the registered person over to her in case she got a speeding ticket or something and they wouldn’t have to be reliable for it. I was wondering if there was anything that could be done about this? Are we able to get the car back or make her pay the rest for it?

Anon

Hi there,
It is a tricky situation to be in and there is not really a way to "make" her pay. You might be able to go to a small claim court/ Dispute tribunal and claim she needs to pay what she owes or return the vehicle. As it is a private matter and no contract or security interest present, the police may not be interested. You may need to ask a legal professional about what would happen if you found the car and got it back. The change of registration name doesn't prove ownership, it just means that the listed person is the registered "keeper" of the vehicle for renewal notices and infringements. Ownership proof is the money transaction and contract at the time of sale. So she cant prove she owns the vehicle, only that she is classed as responsible for it.