Car documents in Romania: selling a car, RCA insurance and fines
A car sold in Romania changes hands on the official sale contract model that the registration office accepts, and the buyer then has 90 days to register the vehicle in their own name (Emergency Ordinance no. 195/2002, art. 11). Until then the car stays registered to the seller, which is why a handover record for the sold vehicle notes the date and hour, the mileage, the keys and the papers. The compulsory motor insurance (RCA) does not pass to the buyer, who takes out their own policy; the seller sends the insurer a notice that the vehicle has been sold, with proof of the sale, and can ask for the premium for the unexpired period back (Law no. 132/2017).
A fine, for a traffic offence or anything else, is challenged with a complaint against the fine (plângere contravențională), filed within 15 days of receiving the report (Government Ordinance no. 2/2001, art. 31) at the local court for the place of the offence or for the complainant's home (art. 32). The complaint asks for the report to be annulled, for instance where mandatory details are missing, or for the fine to be replaced by a warning. When the owner lends the car, an authorisation to drive and use the vehicle names the driver, the period and the territory, and what the driver may not do.
After an accident, the injured party claims directly from the RCA insurer of the vehicle at fault with a compensation claim, or from their own insurer if their policy includes direct settlement (Law no. 132/2017). If the insurer refuses or does not answer, the dispute can go to court or to SAL-FIN, the out-of-court dispute body within the Financial Supervisory Authority, which takes a case once the insurer has been approached directly. The documents are in Romanian, and each page describes its document in English; they are filled in online and downloaded as a finished PDF, or downloaded blank. For disputes with other traders, see the consumer documents.
The documents
5 forms available to fill out or download.
Handover record for a sold vehicle (Romania)
The record that goes with a vehicle sale contract in Romania and notes what was actually handed over: the date and hour, the odometer reading, the keys, the documents and the vehicle's condition, with the defects the buyer was told of. The hour matters: until the vehicle is registered in the buyer's name, fines reach the seller, and the record shows who was driving.
Claim against the at-fault driver's motor insurer (Romania)
The claim in which someone who suffered loss in a road accident in Romania asks for compensation directly from the RCA insurer of the vehicle at fault, without going through its driver (Law no. 132/2017): the date, place and course of the accident, the at-fault policy, the damaged vehicle and the loss, the documents attached and the account for payment.
Authorisation to drive and use a vehicle (Romania)
The authorisation by which a vehicle's owner in Romania lets someone else drive and use it for a set period and area — a trip abroad, a family member, an employee. It says what the authorised driver may do, what they may not — sell or hire out the vehicle — and who answers for fines. For leaving the country it is often required with a notarised signature.
Notice to the motor insurer that a vehicle has been sold (Romania)
The notice in which a seller tells their motor (RCA) insurer in Romania that the vehicle has been sold. A Romanian RCA policy does not pass to the buyer: the seller's contract ends on notification, and the premium for the remaining period is refunded if no compensation has been paid or is owed under the policy. The letter identifies the policy and the vehicle, gives the date of sale and the new owner, and asks for the refund to the account given.
Complaint against a fine (Romania)
The complaint to the local court against the report by which a fine was imposed in Romania — a traffic fine or any other. It is filed within 15 days of receipt (art. 31 of Ordinance no. 2/2001) and asks for the report to be annulled or the fine replaced with a warning. It sets out the grounds of absolute nullity in art. 17 — the officer's details, the offence, the date or the signature missing — the evidence, and a request to be tried in absence.