Lawyers

[ttt0000]

As there are a lot of clever people on here, I wondered if there were any lawyers?
We bought a vehicle at an auction site. Paid a decent amount of money, collected it, bought parts, repaired it ect. We have recently as vertised it for sale and someone has come forward and claimed the vehicle was stolen from them over a year ago. We approached the auction house to gain more information on who submitted the vehicle into the auction and it was direct from the police. In most cases, buying a stolen vehicle means it would revert back to the original owner as the thief/non owner would not have had the right to sell the vehicle. However, in this case, we purchased the vehicle from the police. I would have thought the police must have made reasonable checks as to the owner so I don’t think the owner reported the theft to the police or the central vehicle database at the time of the theft. Would this be a case of ‘Estoppel by negligence’ where the original owner had not taken sufficient care to ensure his belongings were not sold on and therefore we keep the vehicle? The item was not insured so this is between us/police/original owner. Thanks for any value you can add as we are obviously loathe to lose thousands of pounds.

 

[Zep]

I’m not the lawyer you seek, but it’s pretty clear to me that the police will have seized the vehicle in some way and then disposed of it, in this case through the auction.

I would refer the supposed previous owner to the police and let them sort it out.

 

[allandwf]

So would it not be stolen recovered, and have had an insurance claim against it? If he didn't report it then why? Something doesn't add up to me. Hope you get the lawyer you seek and everything sorted.

 

[ttt0000]

I’m not the lawyer you seek, but it’s pretty clear to me that the police will have seized the vehicle in some way and then disposed of it, in this case through the auction.

I would refer the supposed previous owner to the police and let them sort it out.

Thanks Zep, told the old owner to contact the police and knowing this will take week/months to sort, just wondered if any one had experienced anything similar. Thanks though

 

[ttt0000]

So would it not be stolen recovered, and have had an insurance claim against it? If he didn't report it then why? Something doesn't add up to me. Hope you get the lawyer you seek and everything sorted.

Thanks but it wasn’t insured so although it was stolen and recovered, there is not any insurance company involved. Thanks though

 

[redsonnylee]

Was it a VW Golf?

 

[ttt0000]

Was it a VW Golf?

No but sorry if yours was stolen

 

[redsonnylee]

No, it’s uncanny but my boss had this happen. But it was his car that was stolen and is up for sale now so a similar but opposite challenge.
Good luck on this btw

 

[Zep]

To summarise then, the car was stolen from the previous owner, who hadn’t registered it with DVLA (or it would have been returned), not reported to the police (or it would have been returned), recovered by the police, stored by the police while waiting for someone to claim it and then disposed of via the auction.

All seems very odd.

 

[Oneball]

Or seized and the person it was seized from is trying to play a fast one.

 

[breezer]

Or seized and the person it was seized from is trying to play a fast one.

This seems most likely based on what’s come out.

 

[Scaf]

Surely the Police would have to have had a claim of ownership in order to sell it (or they sold stolen goods) then sold it to you, you now own it. Any back story is someone else’s problem.
Hope you get it sorted.
Found this on the net
“If the vehicle remains unclaimed at the end of that 14 day period - whether it’s been abandoned, the owner cannot be found, or the owner has actively chosen not to pick it up - then it’ll be disposed of. The police might do this in one of several ways. If the car is damaged, they may choose to have it crushed or scrapped. If it’s in better shape, on the other hand, they may send it to be auctioned - which is where we often come in here at RAW2K. While many of our seized vehicles are lightly damaged, others are perfectly serviceable, and can serve as a great source of spare parts, a fixer-upper, or a even a great bargain on a new car! Why not take a look around our existing vehicle auctions, and see what you can find?”

What happens to a vehicle after it is seized? | RAW2K

Police can choose to take possession of a a car in under a number of circumstances. So once they're in police custody, what happens to seized vehicles?

www.raw2k.co.uk

 

[j s pollo]

Simple you own the car any problem with the err previous owner tell him to take it up with the old bill but in the mean time secure your motor just in case he has a spare key and your motor dissapears one night

 

[Wack61]

I'd think whatever happens the OP wil be covered by the fact it was bought at auction , I can't see the original owner having a claim with the buyer.

 

[2b1ask1]

Yes indeed Trudy, make sure it is very secure, I’d seriously consider a change of number plate too just to throw them off it. This sort of idiot I would also think would be capable of vandalism given the chance.

Hope you get it sorted quickly.

 

[alfatwo]

To summarise then, the car was stolen from the previous owner, who hadn’t registered it with DVLA (or it would have been returned), not reported to the police (or it would have been returned), recovered by the police, stored by the police while waiting for someone to claim it and then disposed of via the auction.

All seems very odd.

You mean he was a skanker!

Dave

 

[Zep]

You mean he was a skanker!

Dave

In short, yes!

 

[Phil H]

I’d seriously consider a change of number plate too just to throw them off it.

Good call that.

 

[ttt0000]

Thanks for your comments. We are waiting on the police to come back to us but as it’s not a common occurrence, I think it will take a while. I will update when we have more details.

 

[zagatoes30]

Seems like most points covered in the above, can't see the Police selling a car that they weren't entitled to sell hence you should be in the clear and the original owner should deal with the police direct. However as you imply this will put a mark on the car until the situation is resolved.