It was a 89 Cavalier Z-24 and it was on Craigslist for awhile with little interest so I kept lowering the price. So I was so happy when I finally sold it and the Notice of Transfer was missing from my pink slip. So I just forgot about it, he was kind of a rebellious looking young guy. He paid cash. he never transferred title. I got the registration renewal notice. He got a parking ticket and I have sent the parking bureau 3 letters saying I don't know who he is at all and have no way of contacting him. This is Los Angeles so I don't blame them for not believing me, they insist on a copy of the Notice of Transfer or I am the owner as far as they are concerned.
It is $58 if I pay by 8/26, I don't want to pay for someone else s ticket, several friends say they wouldn't pay. What do you think?

Well, you can refuse to pay it but don't be surprised the next time you go to register one of your vehicles or renew your license if you can't. They will refuse to issue a registration or allow you to renew your license until you pay it. Also, you risk getting arrested if they decide to put a warrant out for your arrest for failure to pay. How about this. Go to the DMV and pay for it. Then get a new title for the vehicle issued to you and report the car stolen.

Edit to add: There are other things they can do also. I doubt a parking ticket is a large enough amount for them to do them but before I moved from California I had to go to the 7 southern counties and have liens removed from my record otherwise I would have to pay it when I sold any of my vehicles titled there. Those liens were put in place for money I didn't even owe, but I was the one who had to go to each county with the proof I didn't owe it and pay to get the liens removed. The lien was against any vehicles or land I owned. I could not transfer the title while the liens were in place.

[This message has been edited by Khw (edited 08-16-2013).]

Just wait until it is an accident and you get charged for the clean up or the impound.

They can even change you for their storage and disposal of it.


Been there done that. It actually hit my credit report and caused me grief for years.


Definitely stick to your guns and don't pay that 58 bucks. LOL

quote Originally posted by pokeyfiero: Definitely stick to your guns and don't pay that 58 bucks. LOL

This might be good advice. If you pay it, it may been seen as an act of ownership. If that car gets into an at fault wreck, the owner of the vehicle could be involved in a lawsuit.

Well you could go down and apply for a lost title and then go find the guy.
If he gives you crap you can always report it stolen.

quote Originally posted by Jake_Dragon: Well you could go down and apply for a lost title and then go find the guy. If he gives you crap you can always report it stolen.

Yeah, take it back.
If more people did that, buyers would be sure to put it in their name.

Not sure how it works in California, but here in Maryland the tags pretty much belong to the owner and when we sell a car the tags come off and get returned back to the MVA. Also, did you at least make up a bill of sale that he signed???? Otherwise you may be SOL. I would at least go to the MVA and get it straightened out.

quote Originally posted by V8 Vega: What do you think?

You still own the car until you transfer the title.
Contact the buyer and inform him of the situation and that if he doesn't pay the ticket, you'll come get YOUR car.

Did you not get a bill of sale? Receipt? Anything to docuement a sale took place?
If you're dishonest, you can royally screw him out of the car. If he's dishonest, he can leave you hanging for liabilities if he wrecks or injures someone with it.

Do you still have insurance on it? If you cancelled it, congratulations you now own a car without insurance.

Go to the DMV and report it as totaled or disposed...

whipe your hands clean of it. New owner might need to get a rebuilt title. :P

Not sure what you can do but better do it before he runs over some kid, or you will be responsible for that too. This is a very serious legal liability for you.

It can get messy, you need to go to the DMV and get it out of your name.
There was a thread a few years ago about the same thing....guy sells car, new owner doesn't register it..... It brakes down,gets towed, impounded .......fees add up. Original owner gets called to pick up his car and pay the fines and fees. So he does....he decides to do what he always wanted, have Archie swap in a V-8. After he gets the car looking good the the guy that never registered it contacts him and said hey you got my car......... I don't remember how it ended. Anyone else remember that thread?

I sold a Silverado once, and did mail in the paper. However a few days after selling it the cops called and asked about in incident, the guy had filled up with gas and drove off without paying. I told them I sold the truck a few days ago. They said they would wait for the paperwork and possibly get back to me. I never heard back.

Sold a guy my Camaro. He swore he'd turn in the plates, stiffed me out of $50 on it, and I (my wife, actually) got a call a few months later.

"it's the police. We're tired of putting tickets on your car at the train station. please come get it."

My wife was more than happy to tell them exactly where to find the new owner.

NOTE TO ALL PFF MEMBERS: DO NOT CROSS THIS WOMAN! Don't ask me how I know.

If you dont sign a title over here, your responsible for anything to do with the vehicle until you PROVE you dont own it. Thats red lite/speed cameras, accidents or parking tickets. If I were you, id report it stolen and let your buyer deal with it. Since you dont have any paperwork, he cant prove he paid for it either.

Didn't you take the tags off when you sold it? In most states I have lived I was required to do so and to turn them in. It was the next owners responsibility to get his own tags if he wanted to use the car on the road. I also was required to sign over the title.

[This message has been edited by avengador1 (edited 08-16-2013).]

quote Originally posted by avengador1: Didn't you take the tags off when you sold it? In most states I have lived I was required to do so and to turn them in. It was the next owners responsibility to get his own tags if he wanted to use the car on the road. I also was required to sign over the title.

It is like that in Kansas as well.

You sign the title over to the new owner and take the plate. You turn the plate in and you also get a refund pro-rated of the property tax.

The signed over title gives the new owner a "temp" way of getting home or to a tag office to register the vehicle.

[This message has been edited by Wichita (edited 08-16-2013).]

I can't recall for sure but I think in Cali the plates stay with the vehicle.

quote Originally posted by Wichita: You turn the plate in and you also get a refund pro-rated of the property tax.

You think Cali is going to give you money BACK? LOL!

[This message has been edited by Khw (edited 08-16-2013).]