Car insurance news
Buying stolen cars by accident can be a bother
Police are reminding motorists to exercise caution when buying a car from a private seller. Sometimes the car is stolen, which can cause the new owner to suffer financial losses if they have to hand the car to the police, and can lead to other money issues with the rightful vehicle owner's car insurance company.
A 29-year-old woman from Wiltshire replied to an online advert elling an Audi A3. She agreed to meet the man who had put up the advert in ASDA's Bedminster branch car park in Bristol.
After taking the car for a short test drive, she handed over £8,000 in cash, but on returning home and trying to register the car in her name with the DVLA, it was revealed to her that the Audi had been stolen some months earlier from Heineken UK.
Heineken kindly agreed to let the woman keep the car, but usually when this kind of crime occurs, the vehicle is returned to the rightful owner, and the person who bought the stolen car looses the money they paid.
The woman told the press, "I will definitely be more careful when buying a car in the future and would recommend other people do the same."
The police can let the new purchaser keep the formerly stolen vehicle if the rightful owner has claimed their money back from the insurance company.
If the rightful owner of the car accepted payment from the insurance company because their car insurance covered them for theft, they forfeit rights to the vehicle if it is then found. After that, the insurance company is the owner of the car and may sell it to recover its money.
The new owner may then be forced to buy the car from the insurance company, effectively having to pay for it twice.
It may pay, therefore, to remember that if the vehicle offered is for sale at a much cheaper price than comparable vehicles, there is often a reason why. It may be worth buying a car for more money from a reputable seller, and then getting cheap car insurance instead.