“Make sure the buyer registers it. So that you are released from liability as owner. In case the buyer runs over someone, crashes into something, runs up big toll bills and so on.”
I had that exact thing happen when I sold a motorcycle last year. They guy wanted to keep the license plates, but here in Colorado the plates belong to the owner and the buyer must go get their own plates. I knew this was the scam: Get the bike but keep my plates and not register it. So, once they paid in cash I took the plates. They were pissed. F’em. Couldn’t care less.
Once I had the signed bill of sale I went to the DMV and registered the bike in the buyer’s name. It was easy: I simply said I sold it, showed the BOS, and they entered the buyer’s name into the DMV system so that if he did anything with it my name wouldn’t show as the owner.
People of all types try to not register a vehicle by buying a used one and keeping the plates. They don’t want to register a vehicle because they have arrest warrants or other issues they keep them out of the DMV.
Ha ha. Good story.
And yeah, here in Texas, they are suggesting that private sellers pull their plates off when they sell. The buyer can get temp plates at the tax office (DMV) or even download them and print them off the internet.