Son brought a CAT N car without knowing, 2yrs ago.

[coast88]

Brought from private FB seller, Car has been insured as a non cat N as he didnt know, tried to sell recently and potential buyer did a check and informed him of this status. My question what are his rights? What should he do. 

Edited May 14, 2023 by coast88

[BankFodder]

I'm afraid that as a purchaser from a private seller, there is probably very little you can do – especially as you are two years down the line.

Clearly the potential buyer was sufficiently prudent to check it out. I'm afraid that your son should have done the same thing when he purchased the vehicle in the first place.

Not very good news to you that I'm afraid that that is probably the situation

[coast88]

he insured it as a regular car, does that mean he has to now inform insurer and DVLA as it doesnt say anything on his logbook

 

[BankFodder]

Yes he should inform the insurer. If there was some kind of catastrophic accident and they investigated, they would soon find out the truth and it is very possible that they would deny any liability – especially if they found that the condition of the car somehow contributed to the accident.

When does the insurance run out? He needs to be careful that they weren't simply cancel his insurance and he would then be obliged to disclose that to a future insurer. If the insurance is about to run out then maybe he would be best advised simply to go to another insurer and disclose the categorisation from the outset and at least then the insurer can make up their minds whether or not to insure it.
Be aware that they may well refuse any insurance – but at least it won't count as a black mark against him. However he may be left with an uninsured vehicle which will make it even more difficult to dispose of.

[dx100uk]

opps classic TINY story - Tough Its Now Yours.

 

though cat N does not mean its not roadworthy after being fixed, it's HAD non structural damage only

 

What Is Cat N? Explaining Cars Write-off Category | Carplus

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Cat N cars (previously known as Category D) are a great deal for those who can’t afford a brand-new model yet. Read the article & learn how to buy a...

 

 

 

 

[Tom Lee Pettimore]

As DX100 has already pointed out, category N is non structural , ie cosmetic damage it means the car has had a very minor accident in the past that wouldn't affect it's safety integrity or roadworthiness.

 

It will affect the price because it's registered and accident repaired, but as cars get older, this becomes less significant. All you can do is chalk this up to experience, you could have done what your buyer did and checked the car's HPI report when you bought it.

 

Ultimately though if you've had the car for a while, had good use out of it then what did the  category N status matter?,  it's only an issue now when trying to sell but what i suggest is to put in the advert that the car is cat N, explain what this means and then you'll only get inquiries from people who (rightly) aren't bothered by this.

[Manxman in exile]

Also, while it may be prudent to notify the insurer, is it strictly necessary to do so?

 

I might be wrong but I thought the current legal position was that while you had to honestly and truthfully answer any questions that your insurer asks you when taking out the policy, that it wasn't necessary to volunteer information that was not asked for.

 

As I say, I might be wrong, but the OP's son might want to check their policy documentation to confirm what questions they were asked and what answers they gave.  And check their T&Cs to see what - if any - requirements there may be about notifying the insurer about new infor that comes too light.

[Ethel Street]

My understanding is the same as Manxman. If the vehicle is roadworthy, complies with construction and use regulation and is MOTd then it ought not to be an issue requiring disclosure if insurers don't ask about it.

 

Is the Cat information publicly available? If so insurers could have checked it themselves if they thought it relevant.