Question:
Good day, I need advice. We bought a vehicle from an Auction house in Witbank, 2 years ago. We have been struggling since then to get the vehicles registration documents from the Auction house. According to the Auction house documentation, it takes 14 days for them to supply us with the documentation, it has been 2 years and still nothing. We have contacted them continuously with no success, we have asked our lawyer to assist, but still after 2 years still no luck. We have been to our local municipality license office, to ask for assistance, still no luck. Nobody seems to want to help us, or know how to assist us. The auction house has taken our monies, and now we sit with a vehicle that has been fully paid for, but cant be used, because we cant get the correct documentation to register the vehicle in our name. Is there any advice or routes that we can follow to sort our situation?
Answer:
As the auction house did not honour their part of the agreement, the first option would have to be to try and cancel the contract and request your money back.
As I assume the auction house was the registered owner at the time of selling it to you, they need to provide you with the registration document to register the vehicle.
Have you checked with the authorities who is the existing registered title holder and owner?
Without that document, it is not possible to register unless one of the provisions In reg 8(2) apply. If the vehicle was repossessed and sold by the auction house you could try the paragraph (d)(1) option.
Reg 8. Manner of application for registration of motor vehicle
(1) An application for the registration of a motor vehicle, other than a motor vehicle referred to in regulation 15, shall, subject to subregulations (3) and (4), be made by the title holder within 21 days after the date of liability referred to in regulation 7, to the appropriate registering authority on form RLV, or where the title holder is a manufacturer, builder or importer, on form MVR1‑MIB as shown in Schedule 2.
(2) An application referred to in subregulation (1) shall, subject to regulations 9 to 12A, be accompanied by—
(a) the acceptable identification of the title holder of the motor vehicle and, in the case of a body of persons, that of its proxy and representative and a letter of proxy;
(b) the acceptable identification of the owner of the motor vehicle and, in the case of a body of persons, that of its proxy and representative and a letter of proxy;
(c) the appropriate registration fees as determined by the MEC of the province concerned, and, if applicable, any penalties and arrear fees as referred to in regulations 57 and 59;
(d) if the motor vehicle is registered, the registration certificate concerned, or the certificate referred to in regulation 13B (2)(d): Provided that the provisions of this paragraph shall not apply to an applicant—
(i) if the motor vehicle concerned has been repossessed and the person who obtained the registration certificate under road traffic laws previously applicable, refuses to hand over the registration certificate to the applicant, and the provisions of regulation 11 have been complied with and such applicant submits a South African Police Service clearance of the motor vehicle;
(ii) if the registration certificate is lost and the applicant can prove that a notification of change of title holder or change of owner, indicating that the applicant is the new title holder or owner, was given in terms of regulation 53 (3) or (4), and such applicant submits a South African Police Service clearance of the motor vehicle as well as an affidavit explaining the circumstances under which the registration certificate was lost;
(iii) if the title holder cannot be traced and no notice of change of title holder was given as contemplated in regulation 53 (3), and the applicant concerned submits a South African Police Service clearance of the motor vehicle as well as an affidavit explaining the circumstances under which the registration certificate cannot be submitted;
Regards
Alta
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