Assigning hirer’s rights under agreements
9 Assigning hirer’s rights under agreements
The right, title, and interest of a hirer under a hire‑purchase agreement may be assigned with the consent of the owner or, if his consent is unreasonably withheld, without his consent.
Except as otherwise provided in this section, no payment or other consideration shall be required by an owner for his consent to such an assignment as is mentioned in subsection (1) and where an owner requires any such payment or other consideration for his consent, that consent shall be deemed to be unreasonably withheld.
Where at the request of a hirer an owner fails or refuses to give his consent to an assignment by the hirer of his right, title and interest under a hire‑purchase agreement, the hirer may apply to the Magistrates Court for an order declaring that the consent of the owner to that assignment has unreasonably been withheld, and where an order is made that consent shall be deemed to be unreasonably withheld.
As a condition of granting consent to any assignment of the right, title and interest of the hirer under a hire‑purchase agreement, the owner may stipulate that all defaults under the hire‑purchase agreement shall be made good and may require the hirer and assignee —
to execute and deliver to the owner an assignment agreement in a form approved by the owner whereby without prejudicing or affecting the continuing personal liability of the hirer in those respects the assignee agrees with the owner to be personally liable to pay the instalments of hire remaining unpaid and to perform and observe all other stipulations and conditions of the hire‑purchase agreement during the residue of the term thereof and whereby the assignee indemnifies the hirer in respect of such liabilities; and
to pay the reasonable costs (if any) incurred by the owner in stamping or registering the assignment agreement or counterparts.
The right, title, and interest of a hirer under the hire‑purchase agreement is capable of passing by operation of law to the personal representative of the hirer and if the hirer is a company the liquidator may exercise the same rights under the agreement as the company, but nothing in this subsection relieves a personal representative or liquidator from compliance with the provisions of the agreement.
[Section 9 amended: No. 107 of 1973 s. 8; No. 59 of 2004 s. 141; No. 42 of 2011 s. 53.]
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