Trading in your car should be easy. But what if your car is not, strictly speaking, in your possession?

It’s a question that most people won’t have to deal with in their lifetimes. Hopefully, if you’re trying to sell a car, you can also access it, even if it’s not in top working order. But sometimes, life puts you in an awkward position — one that, apparently, requires you sell your vehicle without being able to get behind the wheel.

How is this possible? One car dealer on TikTok shares the bizarre explanation.

Why Is This Salesman Picking Up A Customer’s Truck?

In his TikTok with over 4,200 views as of this writing, TikTok user JC Prats (@jcprats25) details his strange predicament.

“We have a situation where a customer comes to the store, wants to trade in his vehicle, his truck. However, the vehicle is in his driveway at home. I don’t know about 5, 7 miles away from our dealership,” Prats starts.

However, here’s the kicker.

“The problem is, the customer’s wife has a restraining order on him. He can’t go anywhere near the property, so he wants us to go get the vehicle,” Prats continues.

According to Prats, the dealership checked the title and confirmed that the car belonged to the customer. Furthermore, Prats states that he and the customer have already agreed on numbers. The only thing left is actually getting the car.

“He wants us to go and get it for him and bring it to the dealership so he can trade it so he doesn’t have a problem with getting on the property when he’s not supposed to,” the TikToker summarizes.

To conclude, Prats asks several other workers for their thoughts on the issue, receiving a variety of opinions.

“What do you think we should do on this one?” Prats asks. “Should we go get the truck? Should we stay away from this?”

What Should The Dealership Do?

Prats and the dealership are in a difficult situation.

Technically speaking, if the customer has the right to the car, they have the right to sell it.

That said, this is a situation in which there are a lot of details that could be missing. For example, if the couple is still in the process of a divorce, the customer may be banned from selling the vehicle.

As noted by DivorceNet, once one spouse files for divorce, courts often issue temporary restraining orders to maintain the couple’s status quo until the divorce is finished. These orders usually stop either spouse from selling or giving away property, or taking on new debt, unless the other spouse agrees in writing or the court approves it. 

Selling a vehicle involved in a divorce proceeding may violate this order. Even if the car is in the customer’s name, they may not be legally allowed to sell it until the divorce has finished.

If the dealership still wants to proceed with this purchase, they should consider contacting a police officer. Provided that the vehicle truly belongs to the customer, and there’s no legal agreement preventing them from holding or selling the car, the police officer will facilitate the retrieval of the vehicle without violating any previous restraining order.

Commenters Say They Should Stay Away

In the comments section, users agreed that the dealership would be better served by not taking this deal — at least, not in the manner presented by the customer.

“He should call the authorities and say that he wants dealership representatives to meet a deputy at the house to pick up his property,” said a user.

“No thank you…. He has keys and friends,” stated another. “he needs to send one of them!!!”

It seems that Prats is following the advice of commenters and not picking up the car.

“Not getting involved,” he wrote. “customer has to figure this one out on his own.”

We’ve reached out to Prats via TikTok direct message and commented on the post.

@jcprats25

What would you guys do?

♬ original sound – The Good GM