§ 20. Mr. Wadeasked the President of the Board of Trade whether he will introduce legislation requiring the compulsory registration of hire purchase agreements relating to motor cars.
§ Mr. N. MacphersonAs my right hon. Friend informed my hon. Friend the Member for Taunton (Mr. du Cann) on 30th March, he understands that the great bulk of hire-purchase transactions are already registered on a voluntary basis, but he is studying the situation.
§ Mr. WadeIs the hon. Gentleman aware that there is an increasing number of cases where the purchaser buys a car, generally a second-hand car, in good faith, later finds that it is owned by a hire-purchase company and that the vendor, who by then may have disappeared, had no title to it? A shocking example of this was brought to my attention only yesterday. Is it the Government's intention to provide facilities for a Hire of Motor Vehicles Bill? If not, what do they intend to do to try to stop this growing racket?
§ Mr. MacphersonAs I have said, this is one of the matters that my right hon. Friend is studying. It is also being studied by the Committee on Consumer Protection. I am informed that 99.9 per cent. of hire-purchase transactions in vehicles are registered with Hire Purchase Information Limited.