Fairland, South Africa -- (SBWire) -- 01/27/2013 --With the backing of over 40 years of experience, WesBank has become a leader in asset based finance solutions in South Africa. WesBank’s Executive Head of Sales and Marketing comments on the pitfalls and financial liabilities facing South African motorists who fail to deregister vehicles that have been stolen or written off.

South African motorists could be exposing themselves to huge financial liabilities by failing to properly deregister a vehicle that has been stolen or written off.

South African motorists could be exposing themselves to huge financial liabilities by failing to properly deregister a vehicle that has been stolen or written off.

This is according to Chris De Kock, Executive Head of Sales and Marketing at WesBank, who says criminals use these details to register stolen and illegal vehicles, with the former owner then being held responsible for all future liabilities such as fines and licensing fees.

“All motor vehicles have to be registered on the electronic National Traffic Information System (eNaTIS). One of the ways in which criminals are able to ‘register’ illegal vehicles on the eNATIS database in order to be able to re-sell them is to use the details of cars that have not been properly deregistered.”

De Kock notes that criminal syndicates are known to buy stolen vehicles or cars that have been written off and clone the identification number to use on another vehicle. “If a vehicle is still registered in someone else’s name that person will remain liable for all costs that may be incurred in the future, including any traffic fines incurred or even damage to third party property caused by the vehicle.”

If a vehicle has been stolen, the title holder must notify the police within 24 hours and inform the relevant registering authority within three months. If the owner is not the title holder (i.e. the vehicle has been bought on credit), the theft must be reported within seven days.

De Kock says it is also important when selling a vehicle that owners’ ensure that they submit a Notice of Change of Ownership (NCO) to the registering authority. “It is the responsibility of the seller to submit an NCO. If they do not do this, they will remain liable for licensing, interest and penalty fees until the ownership has been changed. This means that if you sell a car but do not change the details and the new owner incurs traffic fines or has an accident, you can still be held liable for all costs.”

“Buying or selling a car can be a tiresome process with a lot of paperwork however it is important that people do follow the correct procedure to avoid any financial repercussions in the future,” concludes De Kock.

About Wesbank
WesBank has over 40 years of experience in asset and vehicle finance. As a leading asset-based finance provider in South Africa, we finance new and used vehicles for personal use, both privately and through dealerships, as well as leisure vehicles, and also offer expert advice and professional service to our clients.

Our other main focus is providing quality asset finance and fleet management solutions for a number of market sectors. WesBank’s asset finance services cover aviation finance, agri finance, commercial vehicle finance, company vehicles, plant equipment, office equipment, public sector finance and franchise finance. In addition, we offer personal insurance, vehicle insurance, personal loans as well as business insurance, and we are perfectly placed to structure a finance deal to suit your needs.

WesBank is a division of FirstRand Bank Limited, which in turn, is part of the FirstRand Group. FirstRand is South Africa's most innovative Bank Assurance Group with interests in Retail and Merchant Banking, Life Assurance, Financial Planning and Medical Schemes.