Private number plate stolen.

A question about : Private number plate stolen.

Hi
I recently sold my car to a buyer but didn't put my plates on retention before the sale was complete. I put on the receipt that the 'plate was not included in the sale' but after speaking to the DVLA they said i should have retained it before i sold it.... They did say that if i can get the new owner to transfer it, that would be the only way.
I have asked the new owner if he will help but he has said he is unwilling to help but is not stopping me from doing it. As the DVLA said i should have done it before im at a loss.
The buyer has said to me that i sold the car to him as fully maintained with a full service history but after having an inspection done, in its current state would fail an MOT so he has forked out a few thousand pounds to have the necessary work completed to MOT standard and the service work completed to bring it up to full service history ( it had missed a service) he said that he would transfer the plates if i pay up the cost of doing this work. He said he realizes he purchased the car sold as seen which is why he never complained about the work being needed to be done, but he would provide the receipts if we go down this road.
My question is, as i put 'plates not included in sale' on the receipt can i make him sign over the plates without me having to pay for the work he had to do?
I am worried that i sold the car to him as fully maintained and with full service history which it wasn't that he can somehow either make me pay that money to get the plate back or have to pay that money to him and still not get my plate back?
Any advise would be much appreciated, i fear i have lost the plates through not putting on retention before the V5 changed hands
Do you think i could take him to court to make him sign over the plates or recover the value of the plates?
PB

Best answers:

• You should have put them on retention not the buyer. So it wasnt stolen, You gave it to them.
  Sounds like the buyer is making excuses so they get to keep the plate. It sounds like you mis-sold the vehicle if it missed a service.
  You probably going to have to take them to court to get your plates back, But expect them to add costs of swapping the plates over and insurance admin fees etc. And also expect a counterclaim for a car that was not described accurately.
  How much is the plate worth to you?
• It wasnt a lot Ј300.00 its more sentimental value.
  If i take him to court do you think the fact i stated not included in the sale will be enough legally to make him sign the paperwork over, the receipt also stated sold as seen, tried and approved by purchaser, should he not have verified the service schedule was up to date?
• One thing - you don't own the number, just the right to display it, which can be revoked at any time, so it's hard to see how it could be 'stolen'. You needed to put it on retention before any sale to preserve that right, so the DVLA can issue an age-related number, you make up and fit the new plates. That way you get to keep the old number. This process could take several weeks. Once the car is sold with the cherished number, I believe that the new owner has the right to use the number unless they can be persuaded to do the paperwork and return it to you as an act of goodwill. It looks like you are in a difficult position, and mis-describing the condition of the car hasn't helped your case.
• Thinking back, I sold a car with my personal plate on nine years ago. I decided to sell it and got a good offer almost immediately from a friend-of-a-friend who heard about it, before I had had a chance to put the plates on retention. She was a policewoman and we made a verbal agreement that she would return the plates to me after the sale. I can't remember the exact process, but I still have the plates, so it must be possible. But she was a decent character and honoured the agreement, which doesn't sound like it's the case for the OP.
• Yeah, The buyer could quite easily give the plates back to the OP, But it will cost them money. Retention or transfer fees, Then getting new plates made with the age related reg which they will be given then they need to get the MOT, Tax and insurance updated.
  If it were me and i wanted to be awkward (im good at that) then the wording on the receipt could be an issue.
  If taken to court i would argue that i didnt know the wording plates meant the numberplates and assume it to be the door scuffplates which the car doesnt have so assumed the seller already removed them.
  Then play on the facts the seller had not compensated me for the changing over of the registration.
  So easy to bump the costs up for the OP.
• Would his costs need to be reasonable ie. insurance plates paperwork etc or could he make whatever cost he likes ie the cost of the repairs? Could a judge make him do it just for the actual costs associated with the transfer?
  Thanks for the advise so far, I wonder if just drawing a line under it and putting to experience is the way.
• I see no reason a judge wouldn't find in your favor - assuming you are not requiring him to part with any cash.
  The simple fact is they wasn't part of the sale. No ifs or buts. That's what was agreed and documented/
• It will probably work out cheaper to buy a similar registration off the DVLA for Ј300 all in, then you just pay for new 'plates and an insurance admin fee for your car.
• A receipt is an acknowledgement of payment. As such you cannot add binding conditions on a receipt.
  If you have evidence that the plates were clearly not part of the sale then you'll likely win in court. However, as said, I think that a receipt is rather shaky.
• Say bye-bye to that vanity plate, it's gone. If you wanted to retain it, you should have retained it.
  Please don't waste time and money trying to pursue this, I'm sure a lawyer would be glad to take your money, but what will the judgement be on your home-made receipt? Nothing, unless you want the buyer to return the two dinner plates he found under the back seat.
• What was the repairs that needed a few thousand..!?
• I'm struggling to understand how any amount of money can bring a car with a missed service back up to a full service history.
• Could a judge make them do it? Well maybe. But your on shaky ground and a buyer could easily be a pain in the whatsit.
  Just before the case is due they inform you the car was not as described and had faults you didnt declare so they sold the car.
  I think chalking it upto experience is probably wise.
• if plates are only worth 300 then as said it wont be worth the hassle of going down any legal route
  the buyer has trussed you up in your own incompetence
  to anyone in the future reading this link get your plates on retention before considering selling your vehicle
  theres nothing further to add
• Vanity always comes at a cost. Just let it go for the sake of Ј300