Selling aircraft/liability for the widow

[avidflyer]

Hi guys, I know this topic has come up often before, but here is the situation. A friend of mine owned an Avid Flyer A model, and he passed away last December. I told him I would help his wife sell the plane if that's the way things went. He was the builder of the plane, and so now his wife is worried about liability if she sells the plane to someone else. She may want to part it out to avoid that worry. What would you say to her if you were me? I'll be doing all the work either way it goes. Thanks, JImChuk

[David47]

Maybe ask the local FAA guy or the EAA how they deal with such situations when it comes to who would then be responsible for, say maintenance. I’m no lawyer but not quite sure how your late friend’s wife could be held responsible for something she didn’t build, as long as she made it clear the sale was part of a deceased estate. Just MHO.

[Dave S]

Jim,

This is most correctly a legal question and best answered by an aviation attorney.

Google up Gregory J. Reigel who is one aviation attorney who practices in MN and works with this very thing - Experimental aircraft sales contracts. He also advertises in the Midwest Flyer and does presentations at EAA chapters on this subject.

There are other aviation attorneys around but this is one person who I am aware of who may be able to assist the widow with liability mitigation regarding an experimental aircraft.

I should also add, this individual is a member of AOPA's legal services panel in case the builder may have been an AOPA member - many builders are.

[vetdrem]

http://www.eaavideo.org/detail/video/85494169001/webinar-–-the-liability-of-selling-your-homebuilt?autoStart=true&q=selling a homebuilt

This is a link to an EAA webinar in the archives of webinars and covers this topic.

I didn't have time to watch it, but I'm sure it will answer a lot of your questions.

Louie

[avidflyer]

Thanks, guys for the replys. I did give her a link to that webinar, and she watched most of it. It seems like she has decided to part out the plane anyway. I will be doing it for her unless she changes her mind on parting it out. It is a long wing (STOL) A model Avid Flyer, total time on airplane is 242 hrs, with a 3203 65 HP Hirth engine on it. Engine was installed new last fall, and has only 5 hrs total on it. If anyone is interested in parts of the plane, contact me. JImChuk

[jrevens]

That's a sweet looking little airplane, Jim. It's a shame to have to take it apart. I agonized over selling my first homebuilt and considered parting it out. I guess one important factor might be your potential exposure, in the sense that if you don't have much, you can't lose much. I think one of the most important considerations is finding the right person (and his/her spouse). In my situation, I sold to a guy who already had 2 other T-18's, had lots of Thorp T-18 time, and was financially very well-off, as was his wife (independently). If something terrible were to happen to him, his family would be far from destitute. A well-written sales agreement/contract is a must of course, and I think that the buyer and his spouse should both sign it. I believe, statistically, that the rare lawsuits that might be filed against the builder/seller of a homebuilt have been unsuccessful, but it can be very expensive to defend yourself against one of course.

[avidflyer]

If it was my airplane, I wouldn't worry about the liability issues, but not everyone sees things the same way. She just figures she has enough other things to worry about without this issue sitting in the back of her mind. Thanks again to everyone for your replys and advice. By the way, the plane is in northern Mn. Send me a private message if you are interested in any of the parts. JImChuk