Car abandoned at a repair shop, what rights does the shop have to get rid of it?

[Redlyne_mr2]

A friend of mine owns a shop with a car that has been sitting with them for over 2 years. The owner does not respond to phone calls, emails, etc. There is also an unpaid bill on file for the car.

How does the shop owner go about taking ownership of the car? Has anyone been through this?

Thanks

[jacky4566]

Is it on private property or city owned?

Either way. put a lien on the car and get it towed. Problem solved.

[ddduke]

Originally posted by jacky4566
Is it on private property or city owned?

Either way. put a lean on the car and get it towed.

I'd say that's fucking awful advise.

The owner obviously doesn't want it so he won't claim the car and won't cover the lien. If it's towed away and no one pays it then the repair shop owner is out money for the repair. It would be a way better idea to somehow find a way to keep the car to recoup some costs.

[jacky4566]

Awful? As I understand that is the purpose of a lien. To claim due bills on deadbeats.

Once its towed then the DMV can claim the due bill when buddy tries to renew his license.

As I understand anyway..

[FraserB]

You can renew a registration with a lien in place, otherwise all the people with financed cars would be SOL.

99.9% sure there is a process to be followed that would allow the sale of the vehicle to be classified as abandoned and sold.

[Brutucus]

I believe it is called Garage keepers lien act. Try calling Calgary Parking Authority and see what advice they can give you.

[TomcoPDR]

Some shops who have their own yard space will start charging daily storage fees against a vehicle not being picked up. (i.e. maybe after a week or so grace period after customer requested repairs have been completed by the shop)??

[CanmoreOrLess]

Maybe the car owner is in jail, hospital or prison? Benefit (is it really in this case) of a doubt, long ago I used to read a dead tree paper, there were small adverts in the classified area advising a deadbeat car owner he had xx number of days to settle the account.

Two years is an awful long period of time and yes it all covered under the Garage Keepers Lien Act as mentioned.

[Redlyne_mr2]

Thanks guys.

I'm "buying" the car, basically paying the garage off for their labor and parts. There was a lien on it but I took care of that already with the bank. Basically I just want to make sure the original owner doesn't go after the garage for selling the car to me.

[TomcoPDR]

Redlyne_mr2 is wise to be concerned... after all, you never know if the previous owner went on some world wide self discovering excursion and wants to claim their property once they get back.

http://forums.beyond.ca/st2/taking-a-fellow-beyonder-to-small-claims-court/showthread.php?s=&threadid=197469&perpage=20&highlight=&pagenumber=1

[MGCM]

Originally posted by Redlyne_mr2
Thanks guys.

I'm "buying" the car, basically paying the garage off for their labor and parts. There was a lien on it but I took care of that already with the bank. Basically I just want to make sure the original owner doesn't go after the garage for selling the car to me.

what kinda car was it?:thumbsup:

[spikerS]

A lien on a vehicle gives the lien holder the right to collect the money owed.

Usually it goes like this:

Mechanic fixes car
Owner refuses to pay
mechanic won't release vehicle until bill is paid
after 30 days, lien is registered
usually after 90 days the mechanic will send a registered letter to the owner stating that if the bill is not paid in full by XXXX(date) the vehicle will be sold to cover the debts.

Now, here is the tricky part.

If the owner still does nothing, the mechanic must sell the vehicle for as close to market value as possible. Say market value is $12,000.

The mechanic is owed $3800.

If the mechanic sells it to Redlyne for $3800, yes the bill is settled, BUT...

The previous owner COULD (not very likely) go after the mechanic now, if he is able to demonstrate that the vehicle was worth $12000, and not $3800. The mechanic could be on the hook now to reimburse the original owner for $8200. And Judges do enforce that.

This is why shops will try and tack on storage fees and such, but again, the mechanic would need to notify the original owner of the fees before they start, and how much they will be, and the terms.

now if the bill owed and the value are very similar, then go nuts. But if the original owner finds out that his $30,000 car got sold for $5,000, he can file a claim for the other $25,000.

The same thing happens with homes under foreclosure. A bank can be owed $50,000 on a mortgage, but they have to make every attempt to sell the house for fair market value. The Bank is allowed to keep the mortgage balance owed, and any fees associated with selling the house, and the balance (if any) MUST be given back to the home owner.