Maltese Retiree Forced To Scrap Car After Buyer’s Failure To Transfer Ownership Led To €900 In Fines

After being made to pay traffic fines and being dealt penalty points for offences committed after his car was sold, one retiree was left with no option but to take matters into his own hands.

Paul Vella and his wife, YanYan, were plunged into chaos after receiving €900 in traffic fines and even risked losing their driving license for offences committed after their car was sold.

The car, which was registered under YanYan’s name before the sale, had been sold to its new owner last January. But in light of the couple’s health struggles, which include disability, Paul left it in the good hands of the new owner to transfer the ownership under his name.

A mistake that proved costly, after the buyer not only failed to transfer the ownership but has since committed a series of contraventions that all appeared in the retired couples’ name.

Paul told Lovin Malta that he was left with no alternative but to tow the car and get it scrapped.

“I had to pay the fines down to the last cent,” he said. “And between YanYan and myself, we have tallied 13 penalty points.”

A full driving license is revoked if at any time during any period of twelve months, the holder accumulates twelve penalty points or more. This debacle has seen YanYan given five penalty points while Paul suffered eight.

Taking measures into his own hands to prevent any further problems, Paul had the car towed, and scrapped.

It just so happened that a family friend came across the car parked in Mosta with its license plate removed. Allegedly, it had been parked there for almost three months.

This led police to issue a notice that they would be removing the car on their own accord, leading Paul to tow the car.

“It was against my wish, but it was the only way I could be sure that no more fines would be thrown my way.”

“The car was also damaged, and was far too costly to fix.”

Paul liaised with local police, only to find out that his car (which he sold last January) had been sold by the buyer to another person without having registered it in his name in the first place. So much so, that it led the new buyer to report the car stolen.

“Something really needs to be done about this issue. We never asked for this. All we did was trust in the goodwill of a man to see the registration of his car complete.”

Have you faced a similar issue after having sold a car in Malta? If so reach out to [email protected]

Do you think authorities need to give more attention to this issue?