Where do I find the Last Owner of a Car?

Limitations on Vehicle Ownership Search
So where do you find information on the last owner of a vehicle? There are limitations on searching for vehicle ownership as opposed to just a state where the car came from. Names, addresses, and personal identification information of a vehicle owner is protected under a federal law called the Driver’s Privacy Protection Act, also known as DPP.

Origin of Driver’s Privacy Protection Act
This law was passed back in the 1990s when a stalker used an identification number and a license plate from the vehicle to search for the owner. Turned out he was stalking an actress and he actually assaulted this actress in California. Because of that, the federal law was introduced to make vehicle ownership information private and protected.

Comparison to Financial Privacy
It sounds like your bank account or social security number to protect you from somebody. Let’s say that you’re driving down the street, they don’t like the way you’re driving from doing road rage and showing up at your door the next day because they found out where you live.

Challenges in Finding Vehicle Owners
That limitation makes finding vehicle owners for the purpose of tracking down a title or tracking down documentation on your vehicle much more difficult and expensive. Therefore, the first stop is to look at other evidence, maybe finding receipts in the glove compartment, maybe starting with CARFAX to find out what state it came from and looking for information within that state.

Alternatives to Direct Searches
The other methods for finding ownership are usually less expensive and more simple, rather than doing a direct search, which can be done by a licensed investigative agency for specific purposes to find a prior owner. Those types of searches can get very expensive; it can take a long time. So if you need to track down a prior owner, look for the other methods first and then resort to the last-ditch effort of doing an investigative search to find that ownership if you need to.

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Car Title Scams

The Importance of Vehicle Titles
So why are there so many scams when it comes to vehicle titles? Well, car titles are the value of the car. Without that piece of paper, the vehicle is just a piece of metal, has no value. Unless you have the piece of paper that declares the ownership.

Reasons Behind Title Scams
In many cases, it’s thought that it’s easier to make and get a title than to create a car. So somebody might come across a car or do something different with the title to add value to the car. It might be trying to remove a salvage brand or some other stamp on the title, a junk title, to make the car worth more.

Risks of Title Manipulation
It might be acquiring a car with limited or sketchy paperwork with the idea of recreating that title later. The problem with car title scams: it’s a game of musical chairs. So at some point, the real story of that car is going to come to light, and the real title status will come to light, and whoever is stuck with the car is going to lose out.

Legal Ramifications
However, whoever took the actions to do something different with the title will also have some liability. Incorrect solutions are illegal. If you have a vehicle that you have come across through legal means, you didn’t steal the car.

Consequences of Illegal Activities
If you get the title through an improper method, that’s just as illegal as dealing in the car. If you forge paperwork to get a title, if you declare the car was abandoned when you actually purchased it to get a title, that’s illegal. It’s also a form of tax evasion because in every transfer vehicle there may be taxes or fees due.

Avoiding Title Scams
So avoid car title scams. Whatever the real story is how you got that car, make sure the paperwork and documentation match that story. If you don’t try to use things like mechanic’s liens or loopholes or out-of-state titles in order to get a title for a vehicle that you’ve acquired, that might ruin your chances of legally owning that vehicle.

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Can’t find Prior Owner of a Vehicle Title

In many cases, it was a difficult car title problem. The issue is that you can’t find the prior owner of the vehicle. You can’t find the prior titled owner. There may have been an owner, but they may not have been on title. You’re going to need that title owner for a signature. You’re going to need them to sign the title over to you, maybe even to request a duplicate so then it can be transferred to you.

Back Chaining: Tracing Ownership
The best way to do that is to start with back chaining the seller. So if the seller you bought it from may know the person who last was on title, they may know maybe two owners ago who is on title. You may also be able to look at lien holders. So sometimes a lien holder will know the last titled owner.

Utilizing Social Media
You can even look at things like social media. If you know the name of the person or relative, you may be able to discover them through social media.

Last Resort: Licensed Agent
Worst case scenario, if all of your do-it-yourself processes have been exhausted, you can work with a licensed agent such as us to discover prior owners using the DPP, an acceptable use, and then you can get a duplicate title that can then be signed over to you so you can understand your ownership correctly.

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DMV Vehicle Title Rejection

So how do you deal with a DMV vehicle title rejection if you have a vehicle you’ve purchased and are attempting to get a title and the DMV has rejected your application?

Obtain a Rejection Letter
You want to start with getting a rejection letter. You want a formal version of that rejection so you know exactly what the reasons for the rejection are and what the deficiencies are in your application. That way you can start fixing that problem. If you just walk away with a verbal description, you may not be able to understand what that title agent actually needs to get that DMV application done.

Review the Rejection Letter
So once you get the rejection letter, you can look very specifically at what is needed. Users will have check marks, so if you need a notary, if you need a lien release, those will be checked off on the box-room. You’ll know what exactly to get.

Match Rejection with State Statutes
Match up the rejection with the statutes for that state. In some cases, a title application is rejected when in fact it’s sufficient as presented. The statutes weren’t understood properly by that DMV agent. If that’s the case, you may want to check with other locations, other DMV locations, or other reps even in the same office. Sometimes if you go to a different person, they’ll be able to interpret the statutes correctly.

Seek Consumer Advice
If you need consumer advice about your title application, you can reach us at our website, consumerstitle.org.

Understand Rejection Points
Also start by boiling down the reasons for the rejection. Make sure you understand exactly what all those rejection points are, because it might only be really just one thing. You need one piece of paper to solve all of that.

Be Cautious with Bonded Titles
Be very careful with bonded titles. If you’ve been rejected by the DMV and you try to get a bonded title, the bonding company might reject your bond for the same reason. So make sure that any of the problems you can solve, you do that first. Because a bonded title is only going to work if the bonding company agrees that these rejection aspects are not crucial, not fatal to getting a title.

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Finding the last Title of a Vehicle

So where do you go to find the last title of a vehicle? No, we’re talking about the title document itself, not the owner, but the title.

Identifying the Title Holder
You may start with who it is issued to. That person might have that title document and they may be able to transfer it over to you or to provide you with that piece of paper. Sometimes the lien holder has it even if that loan has been paid off. The lien holder may have hold that title document or hold the rights to transfer it.

Determining the State of Issue
If you don’t have that information, you can start with discovering what state issued that last title document and then go from there to see what their regulations would be to create a new one.

Understanding Ownership Transfer
More importantly, just because you have that title doesn’t make you the owner. That’s what you’re trying to do. The title will list and name the titled owner on that piece of paper. Until that ownership change has been done and legally transferred with the DMV, that person listed on the title is the legal owner as far as the state is concerned.

Final Steps for Transfer
So in addition to finding that title, you also want to discover the process to get it transferred if that’s what you’re trying to accomplish.

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