Lightening strikes twice!

Mr Hopkins contacted us with a story to tell. Unfortunately nothing shocks us here at TER as the impossible and sometimes inconceivable really does happen! 

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Back in the distant past we bought a 6 month old Ifor Williams horsebox from a reputable car dealer. He had purchased it at just a few weeks old and it was only for sale as he had bought a new horse lorry. Deal was done!

Six months later we moved and, in doing all the paperwork for our vehicles, I realised the trailer wasn't registered in my name with Ifor Williams. I proceeded to register my ownership and Ifor Williams rang me back a bit later to advise that they were having trouble reconciling the serial number and asked me to check it.

That we duly did and sadly Ifor Williams notified us that the serial number related to different colour and different model horsebox which was approximately 8 years old. This clearly was not the trailer parked in our yard. It was also a bit disconcerting that there was no laser-etched security number on the drawbar which we now know is present on most Ifor Williams trailers from a certain age.

One of TER's plant investigators visited us a couple of days later and explained that the trailer clearly wasn't what it should be and requested to remove the trailer back to his workshop as he had other ways to confirm it's correct identity. The next day, the phone call we were dreading - "I've found the real identity of the trailer and it was stolen last year. I'll be in touch tomorrow when I've done a bit more investigation".

The next day the plant investigator was on our drive with the trailer. Fortunately the trailer had been insured by its original owners and the insurers had paid out which meant they were happy to settle on the payout. TER had spoken to the car dealer we had bought it from (the trailer had gone through the books and therefore wasn't treated as a private sale) and he had agreed he would settle with the insurance company and sort it out himself down the chain. That meant that the trailer was no longer deemed to be stolen and title reverted back to us as the legal owners. The trailer also got a new VIN plate and had its original identity restored. Ifor Williams also updated their records to show that we were the owners.

When we then sold it about 5 years later we encouraged the new owners to check the provenance of the trailer with TER and we checked several of the trailers we have bought subsequently with both TER and Ifor Williams.

Unfortunately for us, the story isn't over - fast forward to last month when the latest TER eNewsletter came out talking about registering ownership of up to 5 items of plant and trailers for free. This I duly took up the offer on, registering both our current Ifor Williams Horsebox and a flatbed trailer, the 2 quad bikes on the farm and our Polaris Ranger Utility Terrain Vehicle - all of which had either been recorded with Ifor Williams or bought from main dealers. Imagine our shock when TER rang to say the Polaris was registered as stolen! The extremely reputable main dealer we bought it from was in a state of shock as well. This is currently under investigation but both TER and the dealer say that it will be resolved in a manner that won't mean we'll be out of pocket. I just never thought to check the Ranger when I bought it - I just assumed it was okay as did the dealer as they received it as a trade-in with a number of others.

It just goes to show that no matter the size, shape or purpose of your plant and equipment and whether it is purchased from a main dealer or privately, there is always the potential for a hidden history to be present on your machinery and it is worth checking out before buying. Trust me - it saves a lot of hassle in the long run!