Abandoned car at the garage: what to do?
Les garagistes se trouvent confrontés à un véritable fléau : l’abandon des véhicules, avant ou après réparation, par leurs clients. Qu’il s’agisse de clients qui ne donnent pas suite après devis, ou de clients qui font faire les travaux de réparation mais ne viennent pas récupérer leur véhicule, vraisemblablement par manque de moyen ou parfois par désintérêt. Que faire en cas de voiture abandonnée chez le garagiste ?
What to do if a car is abandoned at the garage?
The aim is twofold: to free up space for the professional and to allow him to be paid for his repairs and parking fees.
The law of 31 December 1903 was reformed in 2011 and brings a particular advantage to repairers of land motor vehicles (automobiles, two or three-wheel motorcycles or motor quadricycles, tractors, agricultural machinery, construction equipment, etc.) in that, while the law provides for a one-year period for all other abandoned property, it has incorporated the fact that garages need to be able to get rid of an abandoned vehicle quickly, if only because of the resulting congestion.
Our intervention:
It is thus after only three months that the garage can act by entrusting us with the drafting of a request that we will present before the Tribunal d'Instance or the Tribunal de Grande Instance depending on the value of the abandoned property.
La requête doit répondre à un certain formalisme et il est nécessaire, pour choisir le tribunal compétent que nous effectuions une prisée, c’est à dire une estimation (comme le ferait un commissaire priseur, d’où le nom de « prisée »). En effet, conformément au décret du 29 février 1956, nous sommes parfaitement compétents pour établir cette prisée.
This request is presented to the Tribunal, which is responsible for summoning the owner of the vehicle.
If the latter does not show up, or if he does not intend to settle the garage bill and recover his vehicle, the court will order the sale by public auction of the car abandoned at the garage (or the motorcycle, etc...).
Once again, our office will take care of this procedure and get rid of the vehicle for you.
In accordance with the law, we notify the owner of the date of the sale, which gives him a last chance to get his vehicle back... and settle his bill!
Putting the vehicle up for sale :
Once the sale date arrives, our study organizes a public auction, after having made an advertisement to get the best price for the vehicle.
Once the sale has been completed and the legal fees paid, the sale price allows us to pay first the repair costs and then the parking fees, on the express condition that these are provided for in the contract signed by the customer when he deposits his vehicle.
In case of surplus, for example if the bill (repair and parking) amounts to 5000 euro and the sales proceeds are 7500 euro, we will pay the owner.
Frequently Asked Questions :
But what if the owner's missing?
No problem: our study will look for it, and in case of failure, the code of civil procedure offers us the means to continue the procedure even without a known address.
My garage is in the provinces, and your office is in Ile de France: can you take care of my file?
Of course! We are here to help and advise you. So, we can of course take care of the vehicle abandoned in your garage, even if you are far from our study: we have correspondents all over France who represent us and are, at your side, our representatives.
How much does the mechanic have to pay you?
For a complete procedure:
1- Vehicle pick-up
2- Summons or formal notice
3- Submission of the application to the Court of First Instance
4- Service of the decision on the owner of the vehicle
5- Meaning of the date of sale
6- Sales displays and advertising
7- Auction sales
8- Balance of sale in excess of the amount of the creditor's invoice
9- Payment in the hands of the mechanic
Payment of ... zero euro will be required.
We do NOT ask anything from the garage who is already facing a difficulty with this vehicle and its costs that are not paid. We pay ourselves from the proceeds of the sale of the vehicle.
Comment peut on vous contacter ?
Either by mail: contact@huissierweb.com
By phone: 01 41 37 65 30
By fax: 01 41 37 65 31
Par courrier :
SCP LEROI & ASSOCIES,
12 avenue du général Galliéni
BP215,
92002 Nanterre la Défense Cedex
ou encore
SCP LEROI & ASSOCIES
6 place Tristan Bernard
75017 PAris
