bought a car from this used car dealership from a city about 45 miles from my house. went there because they had a car i wanted that was hard to find for a good deal. bought it back in february and they gave me my first temporary permit with an expiration date on march 30. after it expired i called them to see if they had my plates yet and they said oh it looks like the car we sold u still needed to get emissions/inspections done. they were supposed to send somebody to come up to my city and do it but they were lagging, so i made an agreement to drive down there as long as they give me a full tank of gas. so i drove down there and got it done and they gave me another temporary permit. about the middle of april i got a notice from my bank who i pulled out an auto loan for saying that they havent recieved the title and they supposed to hold on to it until i pay off the loan. so i gave them a call and told them all had happened and i thougt the dealer was supposed to take care of it. they told me they’ll send a letter to them and demand it. they also sent me a copy of this letter. right now i have about one more week before my 2nd tag expires and still no plates yet. i gave the dealer a call but no one picked up and now they have an answering machine saying that they are going out of business due to hard economic times. so i dont know if they gave my bank the title, and have no way of finding out if they have my plates. i’ve been having a hard time with this dealer, but wat sucks is that i already paid them for the car. wat can i do if this dealer just bails out on me? how do i get a new title a long with plates?
i checked the vin before i bought the car and its clean. no accidents no salvage or anything, also if this car was no good i dont think i could’ve gotten a loan for it.
Related Resources
- how strong are fish Aquariums? | Fish Tank Aquariums
- Neelia Yoke Tank – Full Release « Of Deer & Dogs
Mail this post
Sounds like you might have bought either a stolen car or a car that was wrecked and declared destroyed. Better check with your motor vehicle dept. using the Vehicle Identification Number (VIN). I would also contact your local district attorney. You could also check the VIN on Carfax to learn the history of the vehicle.
If the car was "no good" you still could have gotten a loan….happens all the time.
You have possibly been scamed to some degree. The title either still has a lien on it from the last owner. If the title is clear, then you have no problem — go to the DMV, Tag Agency, etc… and apply for a lost title. It may take a month or so to get it from the tag office if it was titled originally in your state… if it was titled in another state, it will be a big pain in the butt.
Your first step is to go to the tag office and pay for the title to be researched or apply for the lost title — go ask the people at the tag office. Also, it is the banks obligation to get the title — it is their collateral aginst you skipping town without paying your loan — you can leave it up to them if you are confident that it will all sort itself out.
I know you’re peeved, but try not to worry too much. Every state requires dealers to purchase a bond prior to receiving a dealer’s license. The bond covers these types of problems. The very worse thing that can happen is that the DMV will use $$ from the bond to pay off the car you are driving in order to obtain a clear title to give to the bank for collateral backing your loan. In the meantime, stay in contact with your bank. Go there in person and sit down and explain everything. They will know who to call at the DMV, and I’m sure it will be cleared up in a week or two. I wish these things didn’t happen, as we don’t need another black eye. Good luck to you.
You need to contact the DMV. Take them copies of everything you signed, as well as the correspondence from your bank.
They will open an inspection on the vehicle. What has likely happened here is that the car was sold "out of trust" – I am seeing this more and more every week.
Small dealers use companies called ‘flooring companies’ to help buy cars. Basically a flooring company will lend the dealer, say, $50,000 on a line of credit. The dealer buys his inventory at auction, and pays for it with this line of credit. When he sells the car, he pays the flooring company the balance due, plus a small amount of interest. The flooring company holds the titles on the cars until the dealer pays for it.
When small dealers start going bust, the more desparate ones will sell a car that is floored, pocket the money, and stiff the flooring company. Problem is, since they have the title, you will not get it. The flooring company has no idea the car is sold and, since they have not been paid, they still have the title. Its highly illegal, and a dealer will lose his license and his security band for doing this. But the ones who do figure they are broke and out of business anyway, so they go for it.
With your documentation, the DMv will be able to see if the car is floored or not. They can contact the flooring company and secure the title. The flooring company then sues the dealer for the amount owed on the car.
If this is NOT the case (I am betting it is), the DMV will still investigate and get you the title. It may take a little time, but they can do it. The dealer is already in hot water for issuing more than one temporary placard to the car, so they need to know either way.
Good luck!