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The vehicle my ex fiance drives has the title under my name only. I have been understanding and cooperative for 10 months now. It's gotten to the point he refuses to cooperate and the last two months I have had to reach out to his mother to pay his part. I have given my ex until the end of this month (March 2020) to find someone to transfer the loan to,but I don't think he will. What legal advice can I be given? Can I have the vehicle towed to my home? There are no spare keys, and his name is on the auto insurance we have together. Does that affect anything? I just want to be off of everything with him and need to move on... please help

Brianna
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3 Answers3

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You go down to the police station where he lives and tell them you are repossessing a vehicle you own. Make sure they have a copy of the title and whatever useful information you can find (loan/receipt).

They will then either tell you to go find vehicle and call them or they will follow up where he lives and get the car handed over to you.

If the police act too busy to cooperate you notify your ex that you would like the car back within a reasonable amount of time (2-3 days). You tell your ex (and his mom) if you do not get the car back you are reporting it stolen. It is better if this is done with proof. A direct text message works. If your ex does not answer or accept your texts then certified mail with photocopies of what you sent.

You then go down to police station and file a stolen vehicle report (this is what you are doing in the first scenario but informally). This will force police to follow up on it.

To be clear you want the first scenario as giving notice to your ex is giving them time to hide the car or possibly damage it.

I would not have it towed to your house. You are then in a game of he said she said - cat and mouse. He has the keys. The keys are your property. By not cancelling your agreement more formally you are allowing him to take the car again. If he does not hand over the keys (most police will force him to), you then have the police write up a theft charge on him.

(I worked for a used car dealership and was a "make it happen guy" and courier during my teen years)

blankip
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An alternative to involving the police...though if this isn't an option, please involve the police.

If he lives with his mother and she is understanding, there's nothing wrong (read: illegal) by swinging by their house while he's out, her letting you in the house, and her giving you the keys. Then you get in the car and drive home.

Is your ex on the loan? That might complicate things if they call the cops, but with your name being the only one on the title, they should tell your ex to cut it out and handle this yourselves/via civil court. If it does go to civil court for some reason, it'll likely be an open and shut case.

Havegooda
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Both answers so far seem to have overlooked that your ex-fiance has been paying for some or all of the car, even though you are the only one on the title.

Ask him to propose a plan for him to take full ownership of the car and its loan. Make sure that he understands that you no longer want to share the car. You would like him to take full responsibility or give it back to you.

If you end up taking it back, you should repay him for some of his investment in the car, assuming the value exceeds the loan. It will be hard to calculate this fairly, so it is better to be generous. Presumably you two made an agreement to share ownership of the vehicle. You are unilaterally withdrawing from an agreement, and it is not fair to place all the costs of your withdrawal on the other party.

If reimbursing him for his investment will be hard for you to do, then work to find a compromise if he finds your timeframe difficult.

I hope that you can find a solution together.

Philip
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