Re: Title for a car that never had one

Posted by humanpotatohybrid On 2022/1/15 16:04:17

My '55 has a defective PA title (signed but not notarized) and the guy on it is probably deceased. It was titled in 1990; I was able to look him up and he would be 84 if he's still alive. Anyway...

I was looking into titling and in many states you can get bonded titles. Generally what you need is:
- Driver's license for that state (or a friend that can complete the process for you)
- VIN verification by a mechanic or police officer
- Title bond from a title bond agency (they cost around $100)
- Any supporting documentation and/or explanation for needing one (copy of defective title, bill of sale, etc.)

Usually you will get approval from the DMV first before buying the bond. One everything goes through, you'll be mailed a title with "BONDED" on it, but in a few years (usually 3) you can submit a follow-up title application to get the brand removed, if you care to. Either way, the car is unequivocally yours after the bond period expires.

I'll be looking into Dbedsole's way of titling in PA, as PA doesn't allow bonded titles and I'll be surrendering my out-of-state license soon. In addition, I have relatives here with untitled or defective title cars. Basically in PA: if you don't know where the person named on the title is, OR they are too far away to meet, OR they are dead with an unknown power of attorney, OR their power of attorney is dead, then you are SOL. One of my relatives has a title for his car, but the person on it and her executor are dead so there is NO WAY under PA law to transfer the title, period, even though he bought that car from the family. Curiously while reading through the titling laws I found that the penalty for forging a title notarization in PA is only a $300 fine as a summary offense. You'd think it would be more for how strict they are about these titles.