G.R. No. L-12245; August 31, 1959
FELICIDAD FRANCISCO, plaintiff-appellant, vs. CARMELINO DE LA SERNA AND SOUTHERN MOTORS, INC., defendants-appellees.

FACTS

Plaintiff-appellant Felidad Francisco filed an action for damages against defendants-appellees Carmelino de la Serna and Southern Motors, Inc., alleging breach of contract of carriage. She claimed that while she was a passenger in a truck operated by de la Serna, it collided with a truck owned by Southern Motors, Inc., causing her physical injuries. The trial court found that de la Serna’s truck was completely stopped when it was struck from the front by another truck bearing plate No. A-659, driven by Vicente Fernandez. The court further found that plate No. A-659 was issued to Southern Motors, Inc. in 1956, but the truck itself had been sold by Southern Motors, Inc. to Roberto Bolneo on August 8, 1955, on an installment basis. On the same date, Bolneo mortgaged the truck back to Southern Motors, Inc. as security for the unpaid balance. Southern Motors, Inc. reported the sale to the Motor Vehicles Office on August 31, 1955, but Bolneo failed to register the vehicle in his own name and continued using the vendor’s (Southern Motors, Inc.’s) plate. The trial court held that Bolneo was the owner of the truck and the employer of driver Vicente Fernandez at the time of the accident, and on this ground dismissed the action against Southern Motors, Inc. As to defendant de la Serna, the court, applying precedents on a carrier’s liability, held he could not be held responsible because his truck was parked and stationary when struck.

ISSUE

Whether the trial court erred in dismissing the action against defendant-appellee Southern Motors, Inc., based on the finding that it was no longer the legal owner of the truck involved in the collision despite the truck bearing its plate number.

RULING

The Supreme Court affirmed the trial court’s decision. It held that the prior decisions holding a registered owner liable for injuries even after transferring the vehicle to a third party were not applicable to this case. Although the truck bore a plate issued to Southern Motors, Inc., the evidence showed it had sold the truck to Roberto Bolneo before the accident and had reported the sale to the Motor Vehicles Office as required by law. The vendee, Bolneo, failed to register the vehicle in his own name and illegally continued to use the vendor’s plate, in violation of Sections 5(a), 6(a), and 20 of the Revised Motor Vehicle Law (Act No. 3992). This violation was imputable solely to Bolneo. Southern Motors, Inc., having complied with the law by reporting the sale, was no longer the owner of the truck and could not be held liable for the accident. The dismissal of the complaint against Southern Motors, Inc. was therefore correct. Costs were imposed on the plaintiff-appellant.