The Expert Podcast

…So what are the risks for not changing your car title right away And this is a risk for both sellers and buyers of a vehicle. First for sellers. If you sell your car. And you hand somebody the title to that car and just sign it and don't put their information. You have liability because that person now can do anything with that title with your signature. Even if you fill in their name as the buyer. You don't know when they're going to transfer to their name and get a new title…indexed by the DMV. In that time when it's still in your name, you have liability It could be liability for damage If they crashed a car and dam damage another vehicle it could be injury to a person. If the cars involved in a crime, even tickets and infractions if they get a parking ticket, Or they get some kind of moving violation They don't pay. That VIN number of that car is going to come back to you And those are infractions We'll come back to you until they put the new title in their name So you want to make sure that if you sold a car. That you also were in a very sure period of time, fill out a form at the DMV, disclaiming ownership of that car You can put the name of the person who bought it, or you can just say you sold it that way That VIN number is removed from your name. What about for a buyer ? If you buy a car and get a title. And don't transfer to your name right away. A couple of things can happen First of all if you lose that document. You have risks because you can't go down to the DMV to get a duplicate. Only that person printed on the front of the title can get a duplicate. So can be very hard to do. Also if there's any claims against that seller if the seller it gets sued if they get divorced if they file bankruptcy. Any one of those claimants or creditors is going to look to see what assets they have They're going to find that car listed as an asset because it's still in their name. They're going to try to obtain that car and sees that car because it's still in their name and you have to prove otherwise. And if you lost a title or you can't show that you paid for it you might have to go to court and fight that could cost money. You also don't have proof of ownership of that vehicle. So it gets towed or somebody. Damages it or something else happens to the vehicle where you have to prove it's yours. You don't have that You just have a title signed over to you. If you put any money into the car, if you fix it up, put new brakes on and put a new engine in it. New paint job. All that money is at risk until the car belongs to you It doesn't belong to you until you have that title printed in your name. In some states, you also can not get insurance to cover the car until you can show them a title…If that's the case you have the risk of damage to the vehicle, even in states where insurance automatically covers a vehicle when you buy it. The insurance company might have a defense against a claim. If you don't have the car put into your name. So be aware that as a buyer and a seller, you have a risk until that title is transferred legally to the person who actually has purchased it…