Court ordered title for a vehicle sold on bill of sale?

[mr_camera_man]

Hey everyone... Looking at possibly getting a cheap scooter to keep down at my camper, and of course cheap and good means no title. Title would be a huge plus, but not mandatory since most use would be on private campground roads.

One of them is interesting because the guy says he bought it at an insurance auction and has receipts, just misplaced the title. So there is a paper trail that might satisfy a judge that it's not stolen.

Has anyone here ever done a court ordered title before? Because I haven't.
Are judges stingy with this, or is it generally pretty easy?
For a cheap scooter, is small claims court the proper venue for this? How bad are the fees?

Thanks!

 

[Hoosierdood]

I know a guy who has an old 1997 K2500 Chevy truck for cheap. You just need to pay the towing and storage fees

 

[russc2542]

I never got that. people will sell a vehicle hundreds or even thousands of dollars under value because they "can't find the title" and expect you to think it's legit. it's like $20 or 30 to get a replacement title.

 

[mr_camera_man]

I never got that. people will sell a vehicle hundreds or even thousands of dollars under value because they "can't find the title" and expect you to think it's legit. it's like $20 or 30 to get a replacement title.

Yeah there's very few of these that I'd waste my time with, but if this guy has auction paperwork in his name then it seems less scammy. I could see how he would have hit a dead end asking the auction to get a duplicate or replacement title since it wouldn't have been titled in the auction's name to begin with.

I deal with insurance total losses regularly and I'm shocked by the number of people that treat a vehicle title like toilet paper.

 

[DoggyDaddy]

I would think it would just be a case of having your local LEO run a check on the serial number/VIN number to make sure it's not stolen. Then you take that info (from the LEO) to the BMV to get a new title. I bought a boat and trailer without a title and it was a pretty painless process.

 

[mr_camera_man]

I would think it would just be a case of having your local LEO run a check on the serial number/VIN number to make sure it's not stolen. Then you take that info (from the LEO) to the BMV to get a new title. I bought a boat and trailer without a title and it was a pretty painless process.

The VIN check is part of the process, but BMV won't do the transfer unless there's either an existing title / certificate of origin being transferred, or a court order.

It used to be just about that easy to get a Vermont registration, and then transfer that into an IN title, but Vermont shut that down a few months ago.

 

[DoggyDaddy]

The VIN check is part of the process, but BMV won't do the transfer unless there's either an existing title / certificate of origin being transferred, or a court order.

This confuses me. In my case, there was no existing title or certificate of origin (TBH I don't know what that is). Thus the need for the VIN check. Once it checked out, a new title (not a transfer) was issued to me in my name.

 

[mr_camera_man]

This confuses me. In my case, there was no existing title or certificate of origin (TBH I don't know what that is). Thus the need for the VIN check. Once it checked out, a new title (not a transfer) was issued to me in my name.

BMV says "A bill of sale cannot be used to transfer vehicle ownership for a vehicle that requires a certificate of title by law." They have a few exceptions to that, and an old boat trailer looks like it might be one of them.

I tried doing it with a cargo trailer a few years ago, and BMV wouldn't budge without a court order. The trailer was cheap enough that I just sold it and moved on rather than go through the hassle. This might be less hassle if I have a more clear paper trail.

 

[DoggyDaddy]

BMV says "A bill of sale cannot be used to transfer vehicle ownership for a vehicle that requires a certificate of title by law." They have a few exceptions to that, and an old boat trailer looks like it might be one of them.

I tried doing it with a cargo trailer a few years ago, and BMV wouldn't budge without a court order. The trailer was cheap enough that I just sold it and moved on rather than go through the hassle. This might be less hassle if I have a more clear paper trail.

That's weird. Sounds like more hassle than I would want to deal with for sure. I think I'd just look for another scooter.

 

[schmart]

Hey everyone... Looking at possibly getting a cheap scooter to keep down at my camper, and of course cheap and good means no title. Title would be a huge plus, but not mandatory since most use would be on private campground roads.

One of them is interesting because the guy says he bought it at an insurance auction and has receipts, just misplaced the title. So there is a paper trail that might satisfy a judge that it's not stolen.

Has anyone here ever done a court ordered title before? Because I haven't.
Are judges stingy with this, or is it generally pretty easy?
For a cheap scooter, is small claims court the proper venue for this? How bad are the fees?

Thanks!

One thing to realize.. historically, not every state required titles on scooters/ATVs. At least 10 years ago Kansas didn't title them...
--Rick

 

[Cameramonkey]

I never got that. people will sell a vehicle hundreds or even thousands of dollars under value because they "can't find the title" and expect you to think it's legit. it's like $20 or 30 to get a replacement title.

This. "You are selling the $500 scooter without a title? Look, a title costs $30. I'll buy the scooter from you once you get a title for $540."

 

[boogieman]

What size scooter is it. I believe the ones that are less than 50cc don't have to have any kind of title.

 

[russc2542]

This. "You are selling the $500 scooter without a title? Look, a title costs $30. I'll buy the scooter from you once you get a title for $540."

Yes. More precisely, "you are selling this $1000 scooter for $500 because you don't have the title..." it's $30 and half an hour at the BMV to go get a replacement. It's months of waiting for certified letters to be sent and undelivered to recover someone else's missing title and there's no guarantee you'll get it.


and I think the DUI scooters do have titles now, wouldn't they have to since they have to be registered and insured? Couple years ago they didn't and they were a plague weaving in and out of traffic at 28 mph, holding up a lane doing 28 mph on a rural state highway, etc.