Short answer. You do, if nobody was at fault. Article 1189 puts deterioration without the debtor's fault on the creditor — the buyer — while total loss without fault extinguishes the obligation altogether. Fault changes everything: if the seller caused the damage, you may choose rescission or fulfilment, with damages.
What the law says
If the thing is lost without the fault of the debtor, the obligation shall be extinguished
Civil Code, Article 1189 — Loss, Deterioration, Improvement Pending a Suspensive Condition. Read the full provision →
What the law says
When the thing deteriorates without the fault of the debtor, the impairment is to be borne by the creditor
Civil Code, Article 1189 — Loss, Deterioration, Improvement Pending a Suspensive Condition. Read the full provision →
What the law says
If it deteriorates through the fault of the debtor, the creditor may choose between the rescission of the obligation and its fulfillment, with indemnity for damages in either case
Civil Code, Article 1189 — Loss, Deterioration, Improvement Pending a Suspensive Condition. Read the full provision →
The rule while the condition is pending
Article 1189 governs what happens to the thing while everyone waits for the condition. Its scheme is symmetrical. If the thing is lost without the fault of the debtor, the obligation shall be extinguished; if lost through his fault, he pays damages. When the thing deteriorates without the fault of the debtor, the impairment is to be borne by the creditor; and If it deteriorates through the fault of the debtor, the creditor may choose between the rescission of the obligation and its fulfillment, with indemnity for damages in either case. Improvements by nature or by time go to the creditor.
Damage is not loss
The article treats a dented car and a destroyed one very differently, so the first thing to settle is which happened. It defines loss in the strict sense: the thing perishes, goes out of commerce, or disappears in such a way that its existence is unknown or it cannot be recovered. A car written off in a collision may be lost in that sense; a car that needs a new panel is merely deteriorated. If it is deterioration and nobody is at fault, you take the car as it now is, at the agreed price — the impairment is the creditor's to bear.
Who is the debtor, and was he at fault?
The debtor here is the party bound to deliver the car — the seller — and everything turns on his fault. A car damaged while he was driving it on his own errands, or left unsecured, or used after he had been asked to stop, is a different case from one struck by another motorist in a locked compound. Article 1163 requires a person obliged to give something to take care of it with the diligence of a good father of a family, and Article 1173 measures negligence by the nature of the obligation and the circumstances. Ask what he was doing with the car, and why.
What to establish before arguing about price
Four facts decide this: what the condition was and whether it has since been fulfilled; whether the car is lost or merely damaged; who had custody when the accident happened; and whether that party was at fault. Get the incident report, the repair estimate and the written agreement showing the condition. If the damage was the seller's doing, the choice under Article 1189 is yours: rescind and recover what you paid, or take the car and claim the cost of repair.
Cases citing this provision
These Supreme Court decisions cite the provision above. We list them so you can read them yourself; the summaries of what each decided are not ours to give.
- National Power Corporation vs Socorro T. Posada, Renato Bueno, Alice Balin, Adrian Tablizo, et al, G.R. No. 191945, March 11, 2015 — read the decision on LawPhil →
- Agustin P. Dela Torre vs. The Hon. Court of Appeals, et al./Philippine Trigon Shipyard Corporation, et al. vs. Crisostomo G. Concepcion, et al, G.R. No. 160088 / G.R. No. 160565, July 13, 2011 — read the decision on LawPhil →
- Sergio Osmeña III, et al. vs. SS etc., et al, G.R. No. 165272, September 13, 2007 — read the decision on LawPhil →
- Heirs of TImoteo Moreno, et al. vs. Mactan-Cebu International Airport Authority, G.R. No. 156273, October 15, 2003 — read the decision on LawPhil →
Related provisions
- Civil Code, Article 1189 — Loss, Deterioration, Improvement Pending a Suspensive Condition
- Civil Code, Article 1163 — Diligence of a Good Father of a Family
- Civil Code, Article 1173 — What Negligence Is
- Civil Code, Article 1181 — Effect of Conditions