Ok, I did some searching but I came up short for a case that was very similar to mine. A few months back I purchased a 1953 International r110, completely in pieces. The only things not with it were the original motor and transmission. The truck is titled to a Deceased man from Montana; I got the truck from his son here in Tacoma. The truck was left to him through his fathers will but he has never titled it in his name. I spoke with him today and he is going to see if any of his family back in Montana can produce the title. If they come through Im assuming all he has to do is put it in his name and then transfer it to me. If there is no Title to be found what should I do? Any one been in these shoes?
If there is a title, it likely would have gone through or is going through probate, which is a nightmare. If you can get the title, and it's in the deceased man's name, you're best bet is to forge his name and back date it to when he was still alive. Probably have to pay a fee for not transferring it over within 30 days, but it beats the alternative. I did that with a 54 chevy I bought a few years ago. Worked well for me.
I went through a situation like this before, but I purchased from a living relative. What I did, 1) Purchased the car, then towed it to Washington (Idiot) 2) Went to the DMV by 112th and Portland and asked them what the process was to get a title for the car. They said there was nothing I could do in Washington state because the car was originally titled in Montana, also bill of sale I had was from MT. 3) Contacted the Montana DMV, they said that there was nothing I could do except apply for a bonded title. 4) Contacted the local Sheriff in my hometown, He told me to bring it over, all he would have to do is verify the VIN, and I could get a title, 5) Take the car back to Montana, get the VIN checked, fill out the appropriate paperwork, and BAM get a title. 6) Tow the car back to Washington. It was that simple. I wish you luck on trying to have the family produce the title. I am not saying that this would work in your situation, but I would make a few phone calls and see what you can get worked out. Good Luck
I have been in this situation before what I would do is get a affidavit in lieu of title from Montana sometimes you can print it from online if the state has a website like washington does. Anyway get that fill it out and date it before the guy died hopefully it wasn't 20 years ago, even so they usually don't check death records of people or have his son forge the signature or copy it from something he signed, then have a notary stamp it they are easy to find someone that will, give em $50 bucks. Take that form and go down to the washington dol and transfer that form pay the fee and you will get a washington title in 3-4 weeks!!!
Ok, down this list a bit is the Application for vehicle title by right of survivor-ship. http://www.doj.mt.gov/driving/forms.asp#vehicletitleregistration There is also a form for lost title. Get your buddy to sign a bill of sale no matter what you do. Do you have the plate or plates that were on the truck? Is there an old registration slip in the glove box or somewhere else in the truck. Either might speed up the procecess but what is going to have to happen is that your friend will have to print out and fill out the appropriate form with any and all information that he can provide and send that in to the State of Montana with the appropriate fee. An old registration slip would give the Montana DMV info to be able to dig the title out of the archives. Otherwise it is get a bill of sale from your friend and take the truck to the WSP inspectors when it is running and have it inspected and get it titled that way. The venicle has to be in a complete and running state for that though. I've found that it is usually better to go to the State Patrol inspection station and talk to the inspectors and find the oldest one of the bunch. Ask him what is the right way or best way to do it and go from there. You may be able to run it through inspection and then get a clear title or the three year deal (no bond) that allows you to register the truck and then after three years get a clear title unless someone shows up with the title and lays claim to it.
I assume that Montana has computerized their records like Washington has. In Washington, if the vehicle hasn't been licensed in 25 years, there is no electronic record. Mr48chev is right. Any old paperwork could be invaluable. Washington does have a 3 year program allowing you to provisionally license the vehicle and if there are no claims made against it for 3 years, the state issues a new title. It isn't a bad process to go through if you can find a licensing agent that understands how it works. Stupid question. Has anyone from the seller's side asked for an application for lost title from MT? If there is a title, you need to have the executor of the estate sign it over and you might as well ask that person to sign it over to you directly along with a new bill of sale and it wouldn't hurt to get a copy of his power of attorney. The bad part of WSP inspections is that they want the vehicle complete and operational for inspection nowadays. If the title is clean in MT it is usually straight forward to transfer to Washington. I bought a basket case MG from the son of a deceased OR man last year. They transferred everything without any kind of inspection. I did license it at the same time even though it is a basket case. That seems to solve headaches down the line.
Someone has to have power of attorney for the deceased. They can legally sign off on the vehicle. Hopefully with the title.
This may apply to you, it may not. I bought my '51 chevy from a guy who bought it from a guy that had it in his shop/barn for 6 years. Previously it had been brought to Ontario (Canada, not California) from Alberta. However, I did not know that for certain at the time- it was "the rumor". There was no paperwork other than a bill of sale. I called the DMV four times and got five different "procedures" - it was very frustrating and confusing. So, what I did instead ... One by one, I called each of the provinces DMVs and had then check the "VIN" of the car. Alberta was the only one that had a record of it- and the last time the car's registration stickers were renewed was in 1988. (poor thing's been sitting for 20 years- that motivated me even more). I had each province send me a fax confirmation that the had no record of theft for the given vin number. I also paid for one of those carfax/carproof things (which really showed nothing - except that there was no theft record of the car) I then had an appraiser come out and give me an appraisal of the car (for taxes). Finally, I wrote up an affidavit indicating simply that the vehicle in question was mine, was not reported stolen and what I know of it's history. I had the affidavit notarized. Took it, the appraisal, the DMV faxes and carfax/carproof reports, bill of sale down to the MTO (our DMV) and they issued title on the spot. Lots of research, lots of work... but worth it in the end.
Like Whippet said International Title Service is the way to go. You will wrap yourself up in a huge mess with out of state death certificates and titles even if you produce the proper paperwork. If you produce a death certificate, you then need a copy of the last will and testament of the deceased to prove rights of the vehicle to his son, and then a notorized bill of sale from the son to you. BIG mess. Pay the fees and get your title out of Nevada, easiest way.
Well this is going to be interesting...... I should have a more solid answer next week on what paperwork can be dug up. If its looking like a mess i will dig into the titling service stuff. Thanks for sharing all of the experiences, I will be sure to post my outcome.
I read an article recently and I believe that international title services in NV was involved in a hugh interstate investigation because of the titling issues and that hundreds of cars are titled throughout the nation with the same vin numbers. Go through the proper steps now and save yourself a lot of heartache later. My 2cents worth.
If he has the vin number on the car then all he is doing is going through ITS with the legit car. No fake vin numbers.
I did it a few years back with the vin of my car. So as far as I'm concerned, it was better to go this way as going any other way, I'd lose the original vin. My friend went the State patrol route and even though his car has a very legitimate vin. He now sports a new bright ugly aluminum vin that was installed on his door pillar that rubbed on his door when he closed it and it didn't even come close to an original vin number. After he saw how my vin matched my car, he wished he'd done the same. I don't get buying a title and then using it as it wouldn't match your frame number. Wouldn't that pose a problem if you were pulled over?
Not sure how yours is going, but I have a similar situation. I have a signed title (from 1972 - $2.00 fee - WOW) but it's 'from the estate of xxxx' and the DMV doesn't like that. They said that they need either a Death Cert. and affidavit of inheritance, or the Death Cert. and personal responsibility papers, or letters of testamentary. I bought it from someone who got it from the family... they didn't transfer the title. The person is dead... how do I get the info now???? I'll let you know how it goes. Mike
you can register it in your name and 3 years later you get a title. first, trailer it to a state patrol inspection station and have them inspect it and assign a number to it. don't even mention montana or the last owner. you bought it off craigslist w/no title. you can still sell it within the 3 years, as long as the buyer is ok with the wait. you just transfer the reg to him.
I don't know how WA works, but you might try what works here in CA. If the vehicle is out of the system, tell the clerk that you've owned the vehicle forever. It was titled in your name. You put all of the papers and the plates in an envelope for safekeeping and it was lost during a move or a typhoon or sumpthin'. In CA,all you need to do is get the numbers checked by the Highway Patrol to verify that the vehicle isn't stolen or anything weird. For all of the naysayers in CA who say otherwise, I've done it three times in the past and again yesterday on an old Honda bike. May not work in the land of the perpetual carwash, but it's worth a shot
Hi guys, I hope I can help, as I live in Montana, and mess with old cars. The Montana DMV is a real pain in the neck. They no longer have any provisions for abandoned vehicle titles, except for a Bonded Title. If they deem the vehicle worth more than $500 future value (which they will), they will require you to go to an Insurance company to get a bond for the value they tell you the car will be worth. Then there's a VIN inspection, and licensing and title fees. Yes, you are required to pay for plates and registration even if the vehicle is non-operational. Titles in Montana have to be signed and notarized from Montana also. If you go to a Bank to get a title notarized, they require the buyers signature also. This was told to me by the notary at my Bank and said it was state law now. As for ITS Titles, I have used them some years back with no troubles. But, I have a friend in Washington State who has been waiting for a title from them for over a year, and now they aren't even returning his calls or emails. I have lived in a few different states, and Montana is by far the worst when dealing with the DMV. The only plus side of MT is no emissions testing, and PERM tags for vehicles over 15 years old. I hope this helps.
If you have a friend in the towing business, you can have them impound just the cab, run an AVR thru Olympia and buy it a auction for a few dollars to cover handling, you then can get a title. It takes 30 days for the paperwork, and if there is no vin on the cab, the state patrol will put one on. The only thing to worry about is some one showing up at the auction that wants the cab and title. Just my 2c
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