Short answer. You do. Under a commodatum, the law is explicit: in commodatum the bailor retains the ownership of the thing loaned. Handing your car to a friend for free use does not transfer title. Your friend gets a right to use the vehicle; you keep every right of ownership throughout the loan period.
What the law says
In commodatum the bailor retains the ownership of the thing loaned, while in simple loan, ownership passes to the borrower.
Civil Code, Article 1933 — Loan: Commodatum and Mutuum. Read the full provision →
What a commodatum actually is
Article 1933 of the Civil Code describes two kinds of loan. In a commodatum, one party delivers something not consumable — a car, a bicycle, a house — so that the other may use it for a certain time and then return it. Crucially, Article 1933 adds that commodatum is essentially gratuitous: if you charge rent or a fee for the use, the agreement becomes a lease, not a commodatum. The moment you handed your friend the keys without charging anything, a commodatum came into existence.
Ownership stays with you, the bailor
The statute answers your question directly: in commodatum the bailor retains the ownership of the thing loaned. This is in contrast to a simple loan of money — a mutuum — where ownership of the money passes to the borrower, who then owes the same amount back. In a commodatum, your friend never acquires ownership. He acquires only a personal right to use the specific car you lent him, for the agreed period and purpose. The moment that period ends, or the agreed purpose is fulfilled, he is obligated to return the very same vehicle.
Why it matters in practice
Retaining ownership means you keep rights the borrower cannot override. You can reclaim the car if you urgently need it, or if your friend uses it in a way not agreed upon. Your friend, on his part, must take care of the thing with the diligence of a good father of a family. He bears ordinary expenses. He cannot lend or lease the car to anyone else — the commodatum is purely personal. If your friend were to sell your car to a third party, that transaction does not divest your ownership; the car is still yours, and you can recover it.
What happens if the car is damaged or lost
Because ownership remains with you, loss or damage touches your asset directly. As a general rule, the borrower is liable if he is at fault. If the car is destroyed through a fortuitous event, that loss ordinarily falls on you as owner — unless the borrower was using the car for a purpose not authorized, or kept it longer than agreed, or could have saved it by sacrificing something of his own. The specific rules on the borrower's liability are found in other articles of the Civil Code dealing with commodatum. The key takeaway for tonight: your ownership was never in question.
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.
- Roberto L. Yupangco and Regina y De Ocampo vs. O.J. Development and Trading Corporation, G.R. No. 242074, November 10, 2021 — read the decision on LawPhil →
- Raquel Estipona (Lelandlord E. Sto. Domingo) and Sps. Alberto Co and Lulu Co, G.R. No. 207407, September 29, 2021 — read the decision on LawPhil →
- Rex Sorongon vs. People of the Philippines, G.R. No. 230669, June 16, 2021 — read the decision on LawPhil →
- Atty. Leonardo Florent O. Bulatao vs. Zenaida C. Estonactoc, G.R. No. 235020, December 10, 2019 — read the decision on LawPhil →