Please bear with me on this one as I want to include all the information. My best friend has been dating this guy for about a year. She has off and on problema with her vehicle. So her boyfriend stated he would purchase a car for her (in his name) and make the payments for a year until she got established financially. Well being the non-trusting person I am, I told her not to accept it. She took the car anyway. She traded in her old car towards the new car. They recently got in a fight and broke up. Now he is telling her she has to pay the note or he will call the cops and say it is stolen. Does she have any legal recourse over the verbal agreement?
2007-01-08
06:15:53
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8 answers
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asked by
ericamissamerica
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in
Politics & Government
➔ Law & Ethics
So would taking it to small claims court benefit her financially or only for principal? I just feel bad for her because now she will be without transportation.
2007-01-08
06:25:56 ·
update #1
The car is titled in Florida. But she has moved out of state now. Is she obligated (legally) to give the ex her new address if he wants to pick up the car?
2007-01-08
06:54:58 ·
update #2
Yes oral agreements are enforcable. First, the technical answer: It will be a difficult case to prove. Technically there is some legal basis to prove a case of promissory estoppel (which requires she, in reasonable reliance of his promise to purchase a car, took an action, to her detriment (here trading in her own car) and damages were caused. You can also move to specifically enforce the contractual agreement. The value of the car will determine which court is appropriate (small claims or general civil).
Now the real-life answer: your friend should return the car to its titled owner if he is threatening to report it stolen. Any damages she would be entitled to would have to be set off for the benefit she received in driving it. If the money that she received on the trade-in is greater than the value of the use of the car for a year, she will be entitled to that difference. For example if the trade in value was $5,000 and she drove it for twelve months, and the value of use of the car is $300/month, she used only $3,600. Therefore, she is technically entitled to $1,400. She will not be able to legally sell the car if her name is not in the title. Her best (out of court remedy) recourse is to purchase the car from him for the value of the note (the pay-off amount). EVERYTHING must be in writing. She should officially get the title signed over to her. This way she does not lose the value of her trade in and she stays in the car. Good luck. I advise she seeks legal counsel in her home state.
2007-01-08 08:45:18
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answer #1
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answered by Tara P 5
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First of all tell the Boy friend that if he calls the cops and reports it as stolen it could be considered a filing a false police report and HE would be the one in legal trouble. This is because the gf clearly has some rights to the vehicle even if it is not owned by her. Her bf will need to file a civil suit for conversion against the gf not report it as stolen.
The most practical advise I can give you/your friend is to simply return the vehicle to the bf and let him deal with it. And find another mode of transportation. You said she needed a year to get her finances in order, well drive a piece of S** for a year then get a better car.
All states govern ownership laws by there respective certificate of title statutes, because you didn't list the state I'll I can tell you is that in most state that the holder of the title is presumed to be the owner of the car but there are exceptions.
The gf may be entitled to the value of her trade in if it was in fact applied towards this new car. You might tell her that if she does give the car back, that she is entitled to that value from the bf since he is not living up to his side of the deal.
2007-01-08 06:51:18
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answer #2
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answered by Daz2020 4
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. This is a difficult area because of what contract law calls "consideration". It is a very broad brush description of any compensation for the "performance" portion of a contract. Commonly, these disputes arise because what one party regards as payment, the other views as a gift. If a casual reconciliation is not possible, you could send a registered letter requesting mediation through a third party. If he doesn't reply, another letter to advise of legal action could possibly force a discussion. The BBB, or a similar organization, should be able to refer you to an independent moderator; however, because you may not want this a hostile repairman in your house, a payment plan would be the most viable option. Unfortunately, if this description is complete, both of these elements are somewhat vague and any adjudication will not be easy. Still, it is not likely an offering of this size would be an unqualified presentation. Whether he is refusing at this price, or at any price, your most cost efficient remedy would be small claims court . You can also recover your affiliated expenses and filing fees while representing yourself. As Sam Goldwyn said: "A verbal contract isn't worth the paper it's written on." Copious notes will help mitigate this oversight and lend credibility to your claim. Good Luck. .
2016-03-29 16:43:34
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answer #3
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answered by Anonymous
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She can go to small claims court and sue for the value of the car she traded in and let him worry about paying off the car. It is his car at this moment, she is only out of the value of the vehicle she traded-in.
Actually she is getting a good deal. She could go to her bank or a credit union and see if she can get a loan to pay it off with. Since she traded in the car and some payments have been made, the bank or credit union should be able to see that she is a good risk and use the car as collatoral.
Since she has keys and a verbal agreement to use the car and I would suppose she has insurance also, he is never going to get the stolen vehicle charges to stick. He can pay to have it repossessed or have a officer issue a warrant for its return, with the threat of charges.
Personally I have left behind far more to get out of a bad marriage. She should talk to him about taking over the payments with a official loan papers drawn up to repay the fellow. In order for him to regain posession he is going to have to file papers and pay fees .. if only to a tow truck company. If she could negotiate with the ex boyfriend she would be able to keep the car and learn to work things out with control freaks which seem to abound now days. It is in her best interest to keep the car, so I say she should try to negotiate taking over the payments with a loan written from a commercial third party.
In the mean time she should send her ex a certified receipt requested letter detailing everything about the verbal agreement he made with her. She needs to keep a copy of this letter and its receipt in case the ex tries to have her picked up on charges or she needs to go to court.
Changing a verbal agreement to a written agreement is the best way to start negotiations. If you witnessed the verbal agreement and do not mind getting involved, she can mention having witnesses to the agreement in her letter to strengthen her case. I think she still needs to see if she can finance the car payments and get it into her name, the sooner the better. Actually the ex did do as he said to a point. He did make the purchase and he is paying off the note. He is also giving notice that he wants to nullify the agreement. Write up the letter to this affect and offer options. Would you want to be paying for an ex's car? If she is reasonable she has a good chance of winning with the ex or in court.
2007-01-08 06:49:24
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answer #4
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answered by Anonymous
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Try the sites below. Make sure to change the Location in which your Best Friend resides. The last site is an affordable way to get Legal Protection. Watch the online movie presentation. Hope this helps.
2007-01-08 06:34:45
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answer #5
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answered by citronge69 4
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The boyfriend is doing a rotten thing.
Also, the girlfriend was a little foolish to get involved financially with someone she didn't know very well.
Who knows, maybe a small claims court would decide in her favor. But it may be a problem of "what can you prove?"
The girlfreind may get burned in this, but I hope she learns a lesson. She trusted somebody when apparently she shouldn't have, we know now in hindsight. It's a shame.
2007-01-08 06:21:11
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answer #6
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answered by Anonymous
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if the car is titled and registered in someone else's name, she is screwed. Of course, she can always take up a small claims case at the local court and see if the verbal agreement stands
2007-01-08 06:18:45
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answer #7
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answered by Officer Baz Says... 2
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ssssssssssssssshhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhh
works all the tme,..,
good luck,.,. thanks,...,,
2007-01-08 06:21:33
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answer #8
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answered by Anonymous
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