We Bought A Stolen Motorhome (1 Viewer)

[Chris]

A crappy situation.

Check all your insurances to see if you have legal protection.

If not, try to do a deal with the insurer . They don't want the van or the hassle.

Good luck

 

[Zepp]

So sad it makes me feel sick , I hope you can claim some of cash back if not all .

I agree with the above get legal help and good luck


Paul

 

[Just smiffy]

Thanks for all your support and advice .... Hpi t/c have it all sewn up..! And as useful as a chocolate teapot...
The insurance we had on the motorhome was cancelled by them selves as we were advised by coppers to make them aware..!
We are checking other policies for legal cover.. If not we will see someone...
Please, any advice on this..... 1.. Police said I could take off the adaptions of 2k off the van before insurance company takes it .. Would that be wise..?
2.. Would insurance co have to get it re-plated with new vins before they sell it to either dealer or auction ..?

Just trying to figure out if there is any possibility of getting it back or paying the insurance little as poss other wise paying twice.... Beside not having the money too...

Many thanks..

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[Lenny HB]

Assming you have contacted HPI, how are the trying to wriggle out of a claim?

 

[robrace]

We were in the same situation as you.we bought from a Northampton garage a "ringed camper".We had a 12 month nightmare.The dealer was known to the police!We informed the insurance co that we were interested in buying the vehicle and they let us buy it for a nominal sum knowing that we were the innocent party.Like you I had a HPI certificate but of course that is for the vehicle that the identity had been stolen from!!I sued the Dealer and was awarded £12k but we never got a penny despite sending the Bailiffs round and putting a charge on his house.That was repossessed by the Building Society who had first charge on it.The DVLA did eventually restore it's correct Reg etc but it was still recorded as stolen/recovered.We kept it a number of years before selling it on Ebay!!Got more than I thought I would so didn't come out to bad in the end except for all the hassle inc going to court 3 times.Best of luck

 

[MR. FUSION]

Awful situation hope you get sorted

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[Just smiffy]

We were in the same situation as you.we bought from a Northampton garage a "ringed camper".We had a 12 month nightmare.The dealer was known to the police!We informed the insurance co that we were interested in buying the vehicle and they let us buy it for a nominal sum knowing that we were the innocent party.Like you I had a HPI certificate but of course that is for the vehicle that the identity had been stolen from!!I sued the Dealer and was awarded £12k but we never got a penny despite sending the Bailiffs round and putting a charge on his house.That was repossessed by the Building Society who had first charge on it.The DVLA did eventually restore it's correct Reg etc but it was still recorded as stolen/recovered.We kept it a number of years before selling it on Ebay!!Got more than I thought I would so didn't come out to bad in the end except for all the hassle inc going to court 3 times.Best of luck

Thank you... I'm trying to pm you with no success could you please pm me as I would like to ask your personal advice thanks..

 

[swanseajack13]

o shit, see if this helps hpi ok on the details given,no come back on hpi company,get the charge sheet off the police take it to the civil court, then pay for a high court writ,if he as any property they will take it, the insurance company own that m/h they will look to get any money back they paid out on the claim you can not take any parts off that m/h ,see if he as a track record for this in the past,name him go to your local paper see if others have been done by him,get his court date of plod go to court ask to speak to the magistrate they will also help you make his life hell you have nothing to lose hope this helps fingers xx ray

 

[mjltigger]

Having just paid for an HPI check I am interested in how they are wriggling out of their responsibilities on this one. For the price they charge I assumed they would be insurance backed and would honour their guarantee

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[GAVLAD]

I've had two near miss incidents of similar case but both relating to outstanding finance.
Ages ago, I bought a car from a local garage.
I had bought cars from this garage before and didn't give any thought to anything wrong.
I got a personal loan and bought the car. A few months later, a finance company wrote to me saying they owned the car as finance was outstanding on it.
I took the letter down to the garage and needless to say, the garage owner locked himself in his office!
I spoke with a friend who's father owned a garage and he told me that if the car was advertised for sale on the garage premises/forecourt and not on the road, that garage selling the vehicle would be liable and would have to sort it out with the outstanding finance or provide a refund.
I wrote to the finance company highlighting this and a couple of nervous months later, they replied to advise that I could keep the car as I had bought it in good faith.
I have used HPI since and on agreeing to purchase a motorhome on eBay (£45k) last year, all looking acceptable and perfectly normal, I did an HPI on it before handing over my money.
It flagged up immediately as being on the security register. Within 30mins, I was called by HPI to advise against the purchase and given the outstanding finance company's details.
After speaking with them, they too advised against purchasing, saying if I did, they would repossess it from me as they owned the vehicle. A private investigator also called me. He had been following this vehicle for some time but not been able to catch up with the owner. He told me that when they did catch up with the seller, the vehicle would be impounded by the police and would remain there until the finance company released it from the security register. He also advised me against trying to buy it from the finance company as it would always show up on future HPI checks.
So fortunately for me, I've been lucky.
However, it is my understanding that if you take an HPI out and it shows being cleared before you buy the vehicle, that is your insurance against any come back later on.
I would be looking at taking legal advice and bugger the police if it was me in your shoes.
Good luck and you have my best wishes for a successful outcome.

 

[Just smiffy]

Hpi t/c

1. 12.5 The HPI Guarantee will not cover any losses arising due to a “cloned” vehicle, where the purchase price for the vehicle is greater than £3000, and the purchase price is paid in cash. We recommend that all vehicles are paid via the banking system – such as cheque or a bankers draft. For the purpose of this clause, a “cloned” vehicle is one that has been stolen, and given a false identity, normally that of an identical vehicle.

We paid more than 3k...
It was by bank transfer so we do have records..

 

[gus-lopez]

Hpi t/c

1. 12.5 The HPI Guarantee will not cover any losses arising due to a “cloned” vehicle, where the purchase price for the vehicle is greater than £3000, and the purchase price is paid in cash. We recommend that all vehicles are paid via the banking system – such as cheque or a bankers draft. For the purpose of this clause, a “cloned” vehicle is one that has been stolen, and given a false identity, normally that of an identical vehicle.

We paid more than 3k...
It was by bank transfer so we do have records..

Fingers x'd should be covered.

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[TheBig1]

have you informed the bank and requested them to recover the bank transfer?

as said, the HPI check is worthless as it was based on the van used to clone the identity from. it should of flagged that it was a commercial van not a motorhome though

 

[jhorsf]

get a good solicitor I think most do not charge you for initial consultation while you explain what has happened and they give you your legal options @Chris would know this

 

[Silver-Fox]

Sorry this has happened to you i would be spitting feathers if it was me it happened to

Looks like HPI isn't worth having unless that clause it has to be both things occurring ie bought with cash and over 3k as that's how it reads to me

Good luck

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[Spidey]

No i think it reads £3K and paid in cash. Since they paid by bank transfer then this cannot apply. So if you bought something in cash and it was under 3k then it would be covered as well.

 

[eroom]

When we first bought our 2nd hand Mh 6 years ago we were twice pulled over by the police, once in Devon and again near Stoke. It had been cloned by a guy in the Nottingham area. They could see we were genuine and just laughed but suggested we put a distinguishing mark somewhere on the MH to save keep being stopped. This we did and have not been stopped since.
My heart felt sympathies go out to you from our initial experiences. and wish you a speedy and complete satisfactory conclusion to all this worry. Best wishes, try to keep your chin up B & G

 

[Judge Mental]

that's it def sticking with new!

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[B-well]

We were in the same situation as you.we bought from a Northampton garage a "ringed camper".We had a 12 month nightmare.The dealer was known to the police!We informed the insurance co that we were interested in buying the vehicle and they let us buy it for a nominal sum knowing that we were the innocent party.

Same happened to me years ago, i went to police workshop when recovered , the previous owner had listed 12 points in the van which was confirmed by police.Insurance company wanted 4 grand i offered 2 grand which was accepted. garage owner did not want to know as he took it in p exchange for car and i had to deal with his solicitor but got nowhere.

best of luck for a accepted outcome to you

 

[robrace]

Hi.sorry you couldn't cantact me !my email address is robrace@tiscali.co.uk

 

[Puddleduck]

Hpi t/c

1. 12.5 The HPI Guarantee will not cover any losses arising due to a “cloned” vehicle, where the purchase price for the vehicle is greater than £3000, and the purchase price is paid in cash. We recommend that all vehicles are paid via the banking system – such as cheque or a bankers draft. For the purpose of this clause, a “cloned” vehicle is one that has been stolen, and given a false identity, normally that of an identical vehicle.

We paid more than 3k...
It was by bank transfer so we do have records..

What a s****y thing to happen. Everyone's worst nightmare. So sorry for the situation you find yourself in.

I read the HPI guarantee this way: you are not covered by the guarantee if both these conditions are valid: BOTH the vehicle purchase price was over £3,000 (which it was) AND it was paid in cash (which it wasn't as you paid via the banking system as they recommend). So as I read it you ARE covered because only one of the exclusions was fulfilled.


I wish you very good luck and please see a good solicitor who deals with contract law and insurance companies as soon as possible. Don't bother with CAB as although they are good you don't have time to wait for the appointment. Time is crucial I would say.

You need to ask the solicitor the possibilities of recovery from seller / insurance company and from HPI.

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[androidGB]

Is it the case that HPI will not accept the claim because the OP provided them the VIN and Registration no for the original vehicle,( the Boxer Van - not the motorhome) which presumably had no outstanding finance and hadn't been stolen.

HPI had no knowledge of course of the motorhome's real VIN no or registration, so you can understand why they are not responsible.

I suppose the only way they could be if they were asked to confirm the vehicle was registered as a motorhome.

The £3000 and cash have no relevance in this situation


Andrew

 

[Silver-Fox]

Is it the case that HPI will not accept the claim because the OP provided them the VIN and Registration no for the original vehicle,( the Boxer Van - not the motorhome) which presumably had no outstanding finance and hadn't been stolen.

HPI had no knowledge of course of the motorhome's real VIN no or registration, so you can understand why they are not responsible.

I suppose the only way they could be if they were asked to confirm the vehicle was registered as a motorhome.

The £3000 and cash have no relevance in this situation


Andrew

If you have done all your checks using the V5c against the vehicle you are buying as a consumer you have fulfilled youre side of the contract
So if you arnt coverd after that whats the point of HPI

 

[Jack Russel]

Policemen are not solicitors and are not working for you.

Good luck. I hope you can sort something.

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[gus-lopez]

Is it the case that HPI will not accept the claim because the OP provided them the VIN and Registration no for the original vehicle,( the Boxer Van - not the motorhome) which presumably had no outstanding finance and hadn't been stolen.

HPI had no knowledge of course of the motorhome's real VIN no or registration, so you can understand why they are not responsible.

I suppose the only way they could be if they were asked to confirm the vehicle was registered as a motorhome.

The £3000 and cash have no relevance in this situation


Andrew

The OP hasn't claimed or spoken to HPI at the initial post.
Of course they are liable. The hpi checks should ensure that all & every possibility that can be encountered is covered.
They should be stating on there reply exactly what the vehicle is ,registration , etc; even if they only started with a Vin number.
This ;
"For the purpose of this clause, a “cloned” vehicle is one that has been stolen, and given a false identity, normally that of an identical vehicle."

would mean to me that they were covered by the use of the word " normally" . Hpi obviously know that occasionally clones aren't on identical vehicles & should be ensuring that they cover themselves 100% when doing checks.
Therefore the 3k & cash is relevant as the Op's have complied with that correctly.

 

[chaser]

What about the people who it was stolen from, have they been paid out, or do they stand to get it back

 

[Just smiffy]

Update:
Ok, hpi check, we have no claim as the information they gave was correct for the reg and vin numbers we supplied to them. Although we paid by bank transfer, it was for more than their £3k limit...!
So please all those out there buying a motorhome trust no one and check and check again and again..!

We are hoping that we may be allowed to buy the motorhome back from the insurance company as they have paid out to the original owner but of course this would be down to how much we can get together and how much they want for it..? Any body out there that has bought anything back from insurers I would be interest to know....

I really appreciate all your comments as some of you are coming up with things we are not thinking of.
Thanks....

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[TheBig1]

as already mentioned a few times, the magic figure for a high value vehicle is above £2000. under this and the insurers will just send it to a trade auction or sell it to a specialist company that deals in stolen recovered or damaged vehicles. A good solid offer of £2000 HAS to be considered. in my experience they nearly always say yes, just to get rid of it and recover some costs
DO IT QUICK THOUGH before a trader makes an offer

 

[Lenny HB]

I still think it is worth a solicitors letter to HPI as it looks like the are trying to wriggle out of it hoping you will go away, standard tactic from big companies.

Quote from their website:
"As well as confirming if a vehicle has outstanding finance, is recorded as stolen, has a mileage discrepancy or has previously been written off, the HPI Check® confirms many other details, including the make, model, colour and engine size. A C02 rating and valuation are also included where available."

"HPI Check® confirms many other details, including the make, model, colour and engine size. "

I am assuming on the V5 it stated "Motor Caravan" & the van the police say it was cloned from was a van also the model would have been different, unless the HPI check just said Fiat Ducato and you accepted that as being OK, but the registration of vehicle type should still be different.

 

[chaser]

Make sure you actually see it before making an offer, all sorts of things happen to vehicles in pounds, could have bits missing or dented or just about anything

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