FORMER F1 champion Jenson Button has been accused of fraudulently selling a vehicle that did not belong to him.
Button, 44, sold the blue 1970 Ford Bronco truck in 2022 for £130,000 via website Collecting Cars, saying he had owned it for four years.
But the 2009 world champion had earlier admitted that it was actually owned by his wife Brittny Ward, 33.
Leo Eccles, 45, who bought the Bronco, has launched a legal action claiming Button was “not the legitimate owner”.
Mr Eccles, who runs a gaming firm in Gloucestershire, claims he paid a premium believing that the car was Button’s and wants his money back.
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Documents filed at Los Angeles County Court accuse Button and his wife of fraud, intentional misrepresentation and breach of contract.
Lawyer Ethan Brown, speaking on behalf of his client Mr Eccles, said: “No date has yet been set for the full trial but there is a case management hearing due in the next few weeks.
“In essence the claim is the car at the time it was sold, didn’t belong to Mr Button but to his then girlfriend and the payment made was sustainably more than it was worth but that was on the understanding it was owned by Mr Button, which our client says it wasn’t.
“The car is still in California and hasn’t moved, Mr Button is contending that our client can’t get the car registered in South Africa and that is the real issue, and not the ownership of the car, which we are contesting.
“What we are saying is Mr Eccles paid a substantial amount of moment for a car that he was led to believe was owned by Mr Jensen Button but he says it wasn’t and the owner was Brittny Ward, what he would like is the sale rescinded and his money back.”
Button did not comment.