Risk of a Fake Title Buying a Vehicle?

[Silver]

""washed"-resold with phony titles. A title is proof of ownership.
 A lot of people leave a vehicle title in the glove compartment, which is not a wise idea.

With a legitimate title, a thief can easily and quickly sell a stolen vehicle,
something that would be impossible without a clear title.
And, as with counterfeit currency, a fake title leaves the holder hanging out to dry."

Duplicate title with scammer giving U the fake one ?

I guess meet @ DMV & have them confirm the Titled owner . .

Check for liens etc

If there's 2 names on the Title, both have to sign away the vehicle?

 

[cyndi]

I've never had a problem with that. but then, I never bought a vehicle from someone I didn't feel I could trust.

At the very least a car fax report would tell you the current owner of the vehicle, which would also be the name on the title. 25 bucks, well spent if you're worried.

 

[Wabbit]

Things I never worried about that I now can't stop thinking about...lol joking! Good points to keep in mind, not all people are as kind, honest, caring, and good looking as we are!

 

[akrvbob]

All very good info, thank you!

VERY few people are as good-looking as we are!
Bob

 

[highdesertranger]

I have only known this to happen once, to a friend of mine. he bought a Toyota 4wd. after putting all kinds of money into it, he got pulled over and the leo wanted to check it out closer, well the vin on the dash didn't match the vin on the frame, truck was impounded. so this is what happened, the truck was stolen off a dealer lot when it was brand new in the early 80's. it was taken to Colorado and registered there with a new vin number. it was sold and resold several times, it had gotten several tickets throughout this time, but no one bothered to check the vin numbers ended up back in California. low and behold my buddy the last buyer gets pulled over in 2005 and bam, bye bye truck. highdesertranger

 

[HarmonicaBruce]

I've never had that kind of problem, and I've bought at least 100 vehicles.  Of course most of them have been cheap junkers.

My last van, 2002 sprinter, I bought from an internet ad.  The guy met me at a McDonalds (didn't want me to see him at his house), the owner couldn't come so he sent his brother in law.  The brother in law signed the title, I gave him cash, the name he signed didn't look anything like the name on the title.  But, I went to the secretary of state and they didn't care.  Everything worked out fine.

A boss I had about 10 years ago bought a used bmw from a repair shop.  He got a car fax first.  Later he figured out the car had been rebuilt from being totaled, the engine failed and wasn't covered by warrantee, and he was left out.  So I don't trust car fax.

I might worry if it was an expensive vehicle, but for a cheap vehicle I don't think it's an issue.

 

[ccbreder]

Today it is very difficult to fake a title. Just be sure the dash number, door tag number and the title numbers match. Stolen vehicles go over sea or become parts.

 

[Silver]

"So I don't trust car fax."

Yeah there's a few companies that do the check but
the system has flaws.

It's important to have a seller you can trust.

"engine failed and wasn't covered by warrantee,"
I found a good mechanic I can trust.
& 100 people out 103 trust this man also !

"and bam, bye bye truck" Unfortunate.
It's good we can educate ourselves & help one another.

BTW I've called about 5 different ads on vans I wanted &
all sold within 2 days !

 

[offroad]

Wow. Some horror stories there. Good advice about check the VIN numbers. Also if the price is a lot lower than the kbb.com price you best beware. Sometimes a fixed dealership is best. If they will give you a 15 or 30 day no questions asked warranty. I know most will not, but you can ask.


Maybe look them up in better business bureau.

 

[karl]

Check vin # even on new vehicles from a dealer!

Bought a new Tacoma from a dealer, used it locally for a few weeks, then when on vacation and discovered we couldn't get the door lock keys to work. Called dealer with vin# on title/registration, got new keys - still didn't work, repeat.

Long story made short- we were not driving the truck we had purchased, and 4400 miles later the dealer figures it out and swapped for the correct one.
Could have been awkward had we been scrutinized by a LEO a thousand miles from home.

 

[GotSmart]

I found a nice Buick at my favorite dealers. To avoid interest, I made a deal to pay on it while they held it. After 3 months of this arrangement, I went in and paid it off. They went looking for the title and could not find it. Then they went into the back lot and could not find it. It seems one of the salesmen saw the car in the back, bought it himself and quit. GONE!!!

I was able to talk them into a much newer car for the same price, as I had receipts showing they were collecting money for something they did not own. My daughter ended up crashing that Buick 7 times, and it is still running today!

 

[Optimistic Paranoid]

I'm thinking that if you're buying a used vehicle on CL, the seller should be willing to show you a driver's license or other picture ID so you can be sure the name matches the one on the title.  If he can't or won't, that's a good clue that you should walk away from the deal.

Regards
John