USA Resident needs to sue a UK resident for £1600 from car selling transaction - is it possible?

[solomondogs]

Good morning,

 

I'm hoping this is the correct forum?

 

A friend of mine who now lives in the US purchased a car a couple of years ago to use in the UK when he visited, as he visited for a couple of months at a time it made sense rather than the cost of a hire car every time. In Autumn last year he asked a friend to sell it for him as he was heading back to the states. The upshot is the car was sold last year and the fellow agreed to transfer the money to my friends account, it has never been sent and despite numerous enquiries a number of which said that the money would be paid 'soon', 'tomorrow' etc the money has never been paid.

 

My friend rang me and said he was considering a small claims to recover his money, £1600 in total, so I said I would act as a correspondence address as I had done  before a few years ago for a friend in France but thought I'd better check first as no doubt the forms had changed.

 

I managed to get through to the Money claims online this morning and they advised me that I could not make a claim on my friends behalf nor could I be a correspondence address as the claim was from outside England and Wales and that neither the court nor the claims forms have any provision for a small claims to be brought outside the UK to a person who is resident in the UK.

 

This is deeply disappointing to say the least and somewhat bizarre but there is nothing I can do.

I suspect the fellow who isn't paying the money knew full well that this was the case for anyone living outside the UK and so could  keep the money safe in the knowledge that he was protected from any legal action.

 

My question is in the absence of a small claims route is there any other way my stateside pal can try and get his money back or is it a lost cause?

 

Any advice gratefully received.

 

Incidentally I contacted Citizens Advice and they were pretty much of the same opinion.

[theberengersniper]

Aside from the madness of having allowed a stranger to drive off in the car without a penny changing hands, why don't you go and report the theft (because that's what has happened here) to the Police?

 

You appear to have contact details for the person who took possession of the car, so if it were me I would prepare a clear, concise statement of what has happened, when, the value involved and the detail of the person responsible, and then I would head to my local Police office with it.

[solomondogs]

Thanks for replying, I may not have been clear, it was a friend he asked to sell it, or a former friend, they used to socialise and knew each other well. The fellow has admitted he sold the car and has promised to transfer the money on several occasions, so I’m not certain that will be classified as theft.

[theberengersniper]

I see! My apologies, I hadn't picked up on it being a friend who 'purchased' the car.

Well unfortunately it's still theft, isn't it? So if I were you I would still contact the person who has the car, and I would still do it via recorded letter, advising that the situation has gone on for too long now and must be brought to a conclusion. You could give them a little more leeway than you might any other person and invite them to tell you when they intend to settle, but that you really must insist on it happening, or else they're leaving you with no choice other than to pursue them legally.

 

Hopefully that will jolt them into action, and it gives you some additional breathing space to consider how to approach the jurisdictional issues. Other contributors are far better placed to advise you on that than me, and I'm sure they will later today.

[solomondogs]

No probs at all…we’ll it may be I’ve got a couple of copper mates I’ll ask them.

 

re the money at this point we’ve done pretty much exactly as you’ve said, the next move being a letter before action in the hope that as you say it will jolt him into action but just thought I’d check this morning to see the form when push comes to shove! Only to be disappointed to find out we can’t take him to court, apparently, but I really can’t think that is the case..