blackcamaro
Well-known member
Bill of sale and proof of payment means exactly diddly squat if the vehicle turns out to be stolen - the police will show up and relieve you of it, and you *could* actually face charges for possession of stolen property, as well.
I would never buy anything that I didn't see an ownership for ahead of time....in the sellers name.
The ownership also means diddly squat if it turns out to be stolen.
Reread the post I quoted. He was saying for example you could of reported some of the old vehicles that you had sold stolen and basically claimed them back as yours even though legally you sold them to someone else, that person simply never transferred the ownership but that doesn't mean they don't own it.
Ownerships are simply to easy to transfer in and out of peoples name to be the be all end all of legal ownership. It is more a registration then anything else. If you need to prove you legally own something you will need to show a bill of sale and proof of payment, those two items together form a contract. There's plenty of old ownerships floating around out there for vehicles in someone's name other then the current legal owner.
The title system in the U.S. is a bit better in this regard but can be a huge pain at times.