Lost, Stolen, or Damaged Title? Here’s Your Solution.

Happy mid-March, everyone! We hope that the time change and the longer, warmer days are treating all our friends super well. We know that we love this time of year: there is so much promise in the opening of the Spring season. It’s almost as if we don’t miss the winter at all. (Wink, wink) But onto more pressing matters than the first daffodils. (But seriously, those daffodils!)

Here at eTags, we field a lot of questions about titles and registrations, and that makes sense, since it’s what we DO. It’s what we love, and what we’re great at. So it comes as no surprise that folks might be curious about things pertaining to our expertise. And for the record, we welcome these questions. We love helping people understand the ins and outs of title and registration processes.

Today we’re going to dive into one pretty common aspect of title transfers. It’s a question that comes up regularly, so we thought we’d get really thorough about it.  And that, friends, is:

What do I do if I don’t actually have the title that I need transferred?

Firstly, let’s clarify the question. Meaning, how could someone need to transfer a title that they don’t actually possess, you might wonder. Well, it’s something that happens pretty often, and here are the instances in which you could find yourself in this situation:

1. Your title was lost, damaged, or stolen
2. Your title is held by a lienholder, and you’re moving to a new state and need to obtain a local title
3. You are moving to a new state, and your previous title has disappeared
4. You are buying or receiving a vehicle as a gift, and the seller/donor does not have the title

As you can see, it’s fairly easy to find yourself in a situation where you need a title for a transaction, but are not in possession of it. A title, by the way, even if you do have your hands on it, can be considered defaced (unusable) if it is faded, illegible, stained, torn, or bears cross-outs or corrections.  So you can imagine that the need for a new title pops up with some frequency.

And we should mention that it is prohibited to buy, sell, gift, or transfer ownership of a vehicle without signing over the title itself from one owner to another. Basically, it’s impossible. That is, until you order a new certificate of title. So, if you find yourself in any of the above circumstances, you’re going to need what is called a duplicate or replacement title.

Here we’ll go through each of the four scenarios above according to each specific issue and number.

1. If you own a vehicle outright (meaning, there is no lien (unpaid loan) on the car/truck/SUV/motorcycle), but you can’t find your title, or if it had a bottle of wine spilled on it and it’s unreadable now, or you think the dog nicked it from your filing cabinet: a replacement is simple. If you happen to live in one of the states that eTags provides title services, you can quickly and easily order a replacement/duplicate with us online in no time. The method is straightforward, and we conveniently ship to any address in the United States.
2. If your title is held by a lienholder, you will not actually have the document itself, since it is kept by the bank or lending company until the lien is satisfied. But if you are moving to a new state, you are required to title and register your vehicle there. So how do you do that without that paper document, you ask? Well, that’s where we come in. Reach out to us, and we will direct you through the process of how to contact your lienholder and how to obtain your local title.

It’s important to remember, however, that with an active lien, the new title will not be sent to you, but rather to the lienholder.

That is, until the loan is paid in full. At which point we can also help you to change the name listed on the title from the lienholder’s name to your name as legal owner.

3. If, let’s say, you are moving from Georgia to Florida, you get to the Sunshine State and realize that while you are required to title your vehicle in Florida, you’ve lost your Georgia title. What now? Well, you will have to apply from the Georgia to DMV for a duplicate/replacement title. Once you have that document in hand, then you can convert it to a Florida title.  And yes, this is also something we can help with!
4. If you found a car you want to buy, or if someone you know wants to gift a car to you, but they do not have the title, then you cannot buy or take possession of the vehicle. The seller or donor has to apply for a duplicate/replacement title first and then sign that title over to you. And then with the signed over title, we can help you get a new title in your name.

We know that you probably are aware of this already, but let us reiterate: never, ever buy a car from someone who has no title.

Without a title, the seller has no proof of ownership, and could possibly be fencing a stolen vehicle.  It’s not only smart to ask for a title, it is absolutely, one hundred percent necessary. And seeing as how we make it really easy to get a duplicate/replacement title, there’s no reason, no excuse not to have one!

So, to sum up: there are many instances in which you may need to transfer a title without having the document. But there’s no need to fret. In most cases, you can obtain a duplicate/replacement in no time, and be well on your way to owning your ride without any issues at all. And if you have any question or need assistance, don’t hesitate to reach out to us, because as always, at eTags, we’re here to help!