Beware when selling bike.

[TwoSeven]

I sold my bike in january. Filled in the transfer of ownership papers, sent them in.

Just got a letter nearly 9 months later saying the vehicle register was updated on at the start of September and I am no longer registered as the vehicles owner.

If the old owner had received any fines, hadnt registered and warrented the bike, I apparently according to the letter would have been liable (at least a minum of about $700).

At the bottom of the letter it says "Do not let the vehicle out of your sight until the person you have sold it too has a receipt for the change of ownership form".

It can be done online but the buyer will need a credit card - which is pretty pointless - most sales of small bikes are to people too young to have a credit card.

I dont have a copy of the sellers form on me, but I'm pretty sure that it also contains the buyers details. So I cant figure why it took them nearly 9 months to process the transaction. They should have chased up the seller within a week. I suspect it was only done because the new owner would have recently registered/waranted the bike.

I think its the most stupid law out. Personally once I have sent in the sellers form that should be the end of it for me. I dont think I should be liable for someone elses negligence.

[Karma]

When I sold my car in the UK I sent in the form to transfer it to the new owners, but recieved a letter back a few weeks later saying;

"Sorry, but as you are not the registered owner of the vehicle we are unable to process your request".

Took that to mean that the car wasn't mine anymore, and kept the letter as proof should anything come up later.

Generally I like to write out a reciept when I sell something, with a note of my address and the details of the person to who I am selling, that way if it goes pearshaped then you at least have a reciept to say you sold it.

[Aaron]

It's one of those things that catches a few people out if some 'undesireable' buys your vehicle. You're right though, it does seem very antiquated.

Thankfully you weren't served with any surpise speeding fines or overdue parking tickets :)

[FROSTY]

Nope 2/7 --Im in the business---Never let the vehicle go without a completed MR13 a and B -otherwise its like sex without a condom-youll be lucky a few times but eventually its gonna get ya.
The other proof of disposal of a vehicle is a FULL receipt. Must show Name /address/ licence number/rego number and contact details of the purchacer. Its a reasonable defence if they fail to complete the MR13a

[froggyfrenchman]

the same thing happened to me few weeks back. i sold car bout two years ago. Filled in my part and watched him fill in his. Just got a lovely ltnz letter telln me the car is in my name still, hasnt been reg'd for two years. Gonna cost me more than $200. Expensive mistake. oh well. live and learn

[Sniper]

I have been caught like that before too. The guy said he would do the change of ownership on the way home and from the speeding fine I got a few months later I take it he didn't. I tried to contest the fine but got the story that well, whilst its under your name, you are liable for ALL fee's. So Dad and I had a chat about what to do and came to the conclusion that if the car was still registered under my name, then according to the police it was still mine.
A quick dig around and we found the spare key, went round to the guys house and drove the car back home. We gave him a few days and then rung him to ask how the car was going and we got a big, long sob story about how it had just been stolen. You should have heard the colourful langauge come from him when he heard that we had "stolen" the car.

A few hours later the police and him came around and had a bit of a chat with dad and myself and the police basically said to the guy that well, the car is registered under my name, no receipts were availible so according to them, it was my car and HE should be the one getting prosecuted. After we let him simmer down, I gave him the speeding fine and said that when that gets paid and the receipt for change of ownership was sighted by Dad and myself, he can get the car back. It took him a day but he came back with both receipts AND a personalised number plate :).

Moral of the story, always keep your spare keys incase something goes wrong.

[Motu]

It used to be the sellers job to change the rego,that way you knew it had been done....but of course there were always impatient buyers who said they would do it....but never did.I got caught out like that once,was politely told by the Post Office that I had incured a $3000 fine - but in those days (30 yrs ago) the woman at the Post Office was most likely a neighbour or the mother of some kid you went to school with,and a ''tut tut'' was enough for me to mend my ways for life.

Of course in NZ rego papers are just that,the vehicle is registered in your name,it's not proof of ownership - the only proof you own it is the receipt of payment...rego details and signed by both parties.

[Beemer]

My husband works for NZ Post and says he always tells people to come in with the buyer and complete the change of ownership before handing over the keys. He's seen so many people get stung because the buyer didn't bother changing the ownership and then the seller ended up being liable for all their speeding and parking fines.

Stupid rule, it should be enough for ONE of you to do it, but until it is, make sure you get the receipt from them for the change of ownership, or go in with them to make sure it is done.

[bugjuice]

I have been caught like that before too. The guy said he would do the change of ownership on the way home and from the speeding fine I got a few months later I take it he didn't. I tried to contest the fine but got the story that well, whilst its under your name, you are liable for ALL fee's. So Dad and I had a chat about what to do and came to the conclusion that if the car was still registered under my name, then according to the police it was still mine.
A quick dig around and we found the spare key, went round to the guys house and drove the car back home. We gave him a few days and then rung him to ask how the car was going and we got a big, long sob story about how it had just been stolen. You should have heard the colourful langauge come from him when he heard that we had "stolen" the car.

A few hours later the police and him came around and had a bit of a chat with dad and myself and the police basically said to the guy that well, the car is registered under my name, no receipts were availible so according to them, it was my car and HE should be the one getting prosecuted. After we let him simmer down, I gave him the speeding fine and said that when that gets paid and the receipt for change of ownership was sighted by Dad and myself, he can get the car back. It took him a day but he can back with both receipts AND a personalised number plate :).

Moral of the story, always keep your spare keys incase something goes wrong.
:rofl: :clap: top dog.. I'll remember that..

[Lias]

Only sold vehicles a few times, but I learnt this lesson a few years ago when I got a bill for a years back reg for a cage I hadnt had for ages.

I simply will not let them have the vehicle until they show me the completed change of ownership receipt from the post office.. With so many NZ post agencies being open outside normal business hours, this isn't generally a problem anymore (my local videostore is also a postoffice/kiwibank, and is open all sorts of hours)

[Lou Girardin]

I have been caught like that before too. The guy said he would do the change of ownership on the way home and from the speeding fine I got a few months later I take it he didn't. I tried to contest the fine but got the story that well, whilst its under your name, you are liable for ALL fee's. So Dad and I had a chat about what to do and came to the conclusion that if the car was still registered under my name, then according to the police it was still mine.
A quick dig around and we found the spare key, went round to the guys house and drove the car back home. We gave him a few days and then rung him to ask how the car was going and we got a big, long sob story about how it had just been stolen. You should have heard the colourful langauge come from him when he heard that we had "stolen" the car.

A few hours later the police and him came around and had a bit of a chat with dad and myself and the police basically said to the guy that well, the car is registered under my name, no receipts were availible so according to them, it was my car and HE should be the one getting prosecuted. After we let him simmer down, I gave him the speeding fine and said that when that gets paid and the receipt for change of ownership was sighted by Dad and myself, he can get the car back. It took him a day but he came back with both receipts AND a personalised number plate :).

Moral of the story, always keep your spare keys incase something goes wrong.


You are very lucky that he didn't have receipts. A name on the ownership papers does not prove ownership. You could have been done for conversion.

[kerryg]

I sold my bike in january. Filled in the transfer of ownership papers, sent them in.

Just got a letter nearly 9 months later saying the vehicle register was updated on at the start of September and I am no longer registered as the vehicles owner.

If the old owner had received any fines, hadnt registered and warrented the bike, I apparently according to the letter would have been liable (at least a minum of about $700).

At the bottom of the letter it says "Do not let the vehicle out of your sight until the person you have sold it too has a receipt for the change of ownership form".

It can be done online but the buyer will need a credit card - which is pretty pointless - most sales of small bikes are to people too young to have a credit card.

I dont have a copy of the sellers form on me, but I'm pretty sure that it also contains the buyers details. So I cant figure why it took them nearly 9 months to process the transaction. They should have chased up the seller within a week. I suspect it was only done because the new owner would have recently registered/waranted the bike.

I think its the most stupid law out. Personally once I have sent in the sellers form that should be the end of it for me. I dont think I should be liable for someone elses negligence.

A few years ago I sold a bike to guy I knew. I did my end of the change of ownership process and left it to him to do his end. Several months later I got a fine for (I can't remember exactly but) $300 or $400. The fine was for riding an unwarranted and unregistered bike. I talked to the guy I sold it to. He knew nothing about it. He'd sold it to someone else, and neither of them had done any paperwork. So I go the Papakura Court and explain. They were rude, unsympathetic, arrogant (not to mention fat, ugly and badly-dressed). "If you don't pay, it gets worse and worse real quick, SIR". So I paid up. End of story. (Fortunately the guy I sold to came through with the dough in the end). What I couldn't get is why the cop that pulled up the rider for riding an unregistered and unwarranted bike didn't check the rider's licence (surely it's standard procedure???)...because if he did he would have known that I was not the rider. Anyway the system sucks.

[Sniper]

You are very lucky that he didn't have receipts. A name on the ownership papers does not prove ownership. You could have been done for conversion.
Possibly, but it helps when you live on a base and also the car has been registered under your name for over a year. I don't think we would have done it if we knew that he had receipts

[TwoSeven]

I was more annoyed to get the letter. I can remember there was confustion filling out the original paperwork as it has to be one of the worst forms I've ever seen.

That chap I sold it to was pretty good and someone i'd have plenty of time for, so I'm not really fussed in that regards. Hopefully he is still enjoying the bike - thats the important thing :)