Selling a bike or car of a deceased person is quite a cumbersome process in India. You need to transfer the ownership in the name of legal heir. The entire process is pretty complicated that requires multiple visits to government office including RTOs.
This is not it. The process can also vary from one RTO to another. The process can become more complex if the cities of the legal heir and deceased are different.
To simplify the process, the Ministry of Road Transport and Highways has recently announced changes to the Central Motor Vehicles Rules, 1989.
Declare a Nominee of your Vehicle
Now vehicle owners can declare a nominee of the vehicle in the registration certificate. In the unfortunate event of death of the vehicle owner, the nominee will automatically get the ownership of the vehicle.
The owner now has the right to specify the nominee while buying the car or after the purchase is done. However, you need to submit the proof of identity while mentioning the nominee.
Procedure
After the death of the vehicle owner, the nominee is required to inform the concerned RTO about the unfortunate event within 30 days. After that, the nominee can use the vehicle like the owner for three months. However, nominee need to submit Form 31 within three months of the death of the owner to get the vehicle ownership transferred to her or his name.
The owner has the choice to change the nominee in case of division of property, divorce, or transfer of assets. If the vehicle is on load then nominee is required to first pay the amount to the lender and then only vehicle will be transferred to the nominee's name.
The latest nomination facility will definitely make the transfer of vehicle ownership an easier affair after the death of the vehicle owner. It will also reduce procedural hassle and corruption from the system.
