Is It Advisable to Buy a Second-hand Car Without Transferring Ownership?
3 Answers
It is not advisable to buy a second-hand car without transferring ownership. If you only sign an agreement without transferring ownership when buying or selling a used car, the previous owner can still use the car as collateral, which may harm the interests of the subsequent owner. Definition of Ownership Transfer: Transferring ownership of a second-hand motorcycle, as the name implies, means changing the name of the vehicle's owner. It is an indispensable procedure in the process of buying and selling used vehicles. Not transferring ownership can cause inconvenience to both the buyer and the seller. Precautions for Ownership Transfer: According to Article 31 of the "Road Traffic Accident Handling Measures," if a motor vehicle driver is temporarily unable to compensate, the driver's employer or the owner of the motor vehicle is responsible for making the payment. If the ownership transfer is not completed, the owner remains the original owner, meaning that if someone else causes an accident, the original owner will be held liable. Moreover, if the property rights are not transferred to your name, disputes may easily arise in the future.
I also bought a cheap used car without transferring the title before, and it turned out to be a big problem after just one year of driving. The original owner had used it as collateral, and it was suddenly repossessed by the bank. I lost 30,000 yuan for nothing. Later, I realized that without transferring the title, you can't even resell the car—all the paperwork has to be done by the original owner. If they go missing or keep making excuses, your annual inspection and insurance will be ruined. The scariest part is that if there's a traffic violation or accident, the police will go after the registered owner first, and no matter how much you explain, it won't help. Now I’ve learned my lesson—no matter how cheap a used car is, I won’t touch it if the paperwork isn’t complete.
Take my advice, don't touch used cars without proper title transfer. Last year, my dad took over a friend's car without transferring the title to save money. After driving it for six months, we found out the previous owner had unpaid debts and was sued. The court directly impounded and towed the car away. We spent three months running between the court and lawyers just to get the car back. But during the title transfer period, the insurance expired and couldn't be renewed without the DMV's stamp. When all four tires were stolen, we had to swallow the loss because the VIN didn't match and the surveillance couldn't help. The title transfer fee is just a few hundred bucks—why gamble with potential losses worth tens of thousands?
