Hi Guys

A customer had a car recorved to my garage in august last year with a gearbox fault. I diagnosed the fault and quoted the customer for the repair to the which they replied they would think about it.

It is now nearly a year on and I still have the car. I do not know the customers address as it was just left outside the garage with just phone number in it. I have spoke to the guy on a few occasions to remove it but he just keeps stalling me and i have had enough now lol.

The car doesn't drive.

What are my options for either getting it moved or taking over ownership of the car?

Thanks

Shaun

is it still taxed?

If not call the customer, record the conversation and tell him he has 5 days to sort it before you push it onto the road and call the police as its been abandoned.

untaxed car on the road ........... they'll sort it.

(i'd also warn the police you'll do this before hand, that way if anything happens you've got a defence of telling them first and them not telling you it was illegal + you've got evidence of warning the customer).

make sure you send a bill for one years storage.

what a cheeky get!

say you have lost the telephone number of the owner and don't have any way to find out.

then call police and say car has been abandoned on your premises - let them sort it out.

Do it right. Phone the customer giving them 1 week to move the car or it will become a police matter. Phone the police and explain that the customer has abandoned the car at your premesis. You've called them several times over the last year and they haven't moved it. Let the boys in blue enforce the law, don't take it into your own hands.

Does he have any proof that you have the car? Pity the cost of scrap is low at the moment!

Its an 03 clio with a semi-auto gearbox fault.

Go down to your local camp site....

Is there not a section of the reg process that allows bosses of garages (assuming you are one) to change the name to yours if there has been no contact or attempt to move the car??? Sell on or scrap it.

Edit: 6 months rings a bell for claiming ownership

[Edited on 8/6/09 by focijohn]

Contact the customer. Tell them they have 1 week to remove the vehicle and then you'll start applying storage charges at £20 per day. That usually gets a response I've found.

If they get arsey about the charges point out that you have waved the charge for the last year otherwise they'd already owe you £7000.

adrian

Push it out of your place, unless there's proof it's been there. Or maybe it should be "nicked"

Thanks for the replies and advice! Adithorp I took you advice but also added that he could give me the logbook to offset and charges - which he did today.

I have hpi'ed the car and it was a cat c in 2006, its been repaired in a fashion and obv put back on the road. It doesn't say anything about this on the logbook though - should it?

If its all kosher I will try to repair it and use it as a daily drive - its only done 41k

Thanks

Shaun

Free car, nice

Glad you got somewhere with it. Money talks!

adrian

quote:

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Originally posted by prawnabieI have hpi'ed the car and it was a cat c in 2006, its been repaired in a fashion and obv put back on the road. It doesn't say anything about this on the logbook though - should it?
Shaun

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Yeah, be careful about it not having a VIC. Maybe you got the original V5 from before the accident.

If it hasn't had a VIC then big problems may turn up if you ever have an accident, though DVLA shouldn't give you a v5 if it hasn't.