ACTION JACKSON: Things to remember when buying/selling a used car

BATON ROUGE, La. (WAFB) - Nathaniel King bought a car in June, but still hasn’t received a title or registration.

“I’ve been waiting for registration for 6 months.”

King recently filed a complaint with the Louisiana Used Motor Vehicle Commission.

“Now it’s December and almost the end of the year, the temp tags have expired, I can’t drive the car. and they not coming up with my registration and I’m still paying them what I’m supposed to be paying them,” King said.

The army vet says the commission advised him to continue paying his note to avoid having the car repossessed. So for now, he’s paying for something he can’t even use.

“I’m scared to go anywhere, like I said I had to go out of town yesterday to go to the VA hospital but I couldn’t drive my car down there. I had to pay someone to take me down there,” King said.

The owner of ABZ Used Cars in Baton Rouge, where King bought the car, said there were communication issues with the lien holder, which caused a nearly six month delay in getting title and registration papers. However, he said they have reordered the documents and will have them in King’s hands by the end of the week.

“Something ain’t right because they selling the car that they don’t have all of the necessary documents to sell it,” King said.

Here’s a few tips from the Louisiana Commission about buying a used car:

• Always make sure the dealership has the title for the car you want before you buy
• Make sure to continue paying your note even if you run into a situation like King, because your car can legally be repossessed.
• Do not wait until last minute to file a complaint. The commission tells me used car dealerships must provide you or your financer with a title within 20 days of purchase by law. This can help save you late fees at the OMV later on.

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