[CA] I aquired a boat and trailer with no paperwork

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oompahlumpa

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I acquired a 14' Starcraft Seafarer but it didn't come with any paperwork. I have a bill of sale, but that's it. What steps do I need to go through (I am in California) to register the boat and trailer? Looking at the previous stickers it looks like the boat was registered in Arizona in 2015. And I am not sure about the trailer. It has an AZ license plate on it.

Thank you for your help!
 
CA DMV has a process for boats with "lost" paperwork. I've seen it on the DMV website. I can't recall the details but seems there was a form the previous owner needs to complete.
 
LDUBS said:
CA DMV has a process for boats with "lost" paperwork. I've seen it on the DMV website. I can't recall the details but seems there was a form the previous owner needs to complete.

Hmm.. what if you can't get a hold of the previous owner?
 
Head over to the DMV and say "I hope you can help me" It sets up the worker to try to not fail. I don't remember how I learned this but it does work. At one time a friend was given a car with no title he had to get a bond on the car. This was in Illinois
 
lckstckn2smknbrls said:
Head over to the DMV and say "I hope you can help me" It sets up the worker to try to not fail. I don't remember how I learned this but it does work. At one time a friend was given a car with no title he had to get a bond on the car. This was in Illinois


Umm, this is California DMV we are talking about here. You would be lucky if they put down their finger nail file. Just kidding (kinda). But I do agree. Catch more with honey, etc.

I would still check on line before I visited a DMV office. Might save yourself some time if you come in with the info they want.
 
LDUBS said:
lckstckn2smknbrls said:
I would still check on line before I visited a DMV office. Might save yourself some time if you come in with the info they want.

I was hoping I would get someone with past experience on here! People buy boats without papers all the time. I am looking online though, hoping to have some knowledge before I wank into the living hell that is the DMV.
 
Just for the heck of it I checked DVM.CA.GOV.

I think I just changed my mind. You best bet is probably doing what lckstckn2smknbrls suggests and go to the DMV hat in hand. Then beg for mercy! Haha

The process for replacing a lost title is pretty extensive. See below. Transferring from another state might be a slightly easier and at least you have the bill of sale. So, who knows.

Good luck. I hope it all falls into place with no hassle.

Boat Title.png
Out of State.png
 
Many State departments get fussy when you do not have the proper paperwork. The real key will be whether the registration in Arizona is in the same name as the guy who sold it to you.

Then, there is the case of the trailer. At least here in TX, Trailers are DMV and boats and motors are Parks&Wildlife. Both bureaucracies have their own interpretation of what is good and right.

Buying a vehicle..boat/trailer without anything but a bill of sale, and not being able to get the seller to sign the proper new paperwork, could easily mean loss of the boat/etc.

I have stories...none of them are good.
 
It drives me crazy that all of the states seem to be different in how they handle motor vehicles. Whether it's a car, truck, motorcycle, boat, trailer, quad, etc. There should be some standard or national titling system so it's not this difficult. NJ has titles/registration for boats (13' or longer, nothing for motors) but with a trailer, it has to be rated over 2500 lbs to get a title otherwise you just get a registration. And it's very difficult to claim or takeover something a previous owner may have abandoned. A notarized bill of sale is a must but even that is often not enough. I won't even mess with anything that doesn't have good, clean paperwork anymore. I wish the OP the best of luck, but without a title it may be very difficult if not impossible to get the boat titled and registered.

On a side note, these newer electronic signatures are cr@p. No matter how hard I try to sign properly with an electronic pen, it does not look close to my real signature so I don't think these are going to make things better, probably make it worse.
 
States Rights.

All the State bureaucrats, individually, get a chance to hire their brothers-in-law to screw things up. if laws were uniform, the BIL's would have to know how to read, write and think.
 
When I purchased my first boat in 2013 it was last registered in 1992. It was almost the same situation as you so I applied for a lost title form and got the previous owner’s signature [emoji6]
Then I salvaged a abandoned trailer for it that was wrongly marked as stollen by a typical DMV worker so I had to apply for a new trailer vin number from CHP. Then I went back to the DMV and registered the trailer as new. It took about 4 months but it can be done.


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EZ707 said:
When I purchased my first boat in 2013 it was last registered in 1992. It was almost the same situation as you so I applied for a lost title form and got the previous owner’s signature [emoji6]
Then I salvaged a abandoned trailer for it that was wrongly marked as stollen by a typical DMV worker so I had to apply for a new trailer vin number from CHP. Then I went back to the DMV and registered the trailer as new. It took about 4 months but it can be done.


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EZ707, I'm curious. I have read that unlike cars, boat registration fees in California cannot be waived if the boat is not used or not operable. Did DMV want someone to pay the missing registration fees from 1993 to 2013?
 
LDUBS said:
EZ707 said:
When I purchased my first boat in 2013 it was last registered in 1992. It was almost the same situation as you so I applied for a lost title form and got the previous owner’s signature [emoji6]
Then I salvaged a abandoned trailer for it that was wrongly marked as stollen by a typical DMV worker so I had to apply for a new trailer vin number from CHP. Then I went back to the DMV and registered the trailer as new. It took about 4 months but it can be done.


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

EZ707, I'm curious. I have read that unlike cars, boat registration fees in California cannot be waived if the boat is not used or not operable. Did DMV want someone to pay the missing registration fees from 1993 to 2013?
they did. That someone was me. From what I understand the vessel is removed from the system after five years of not being registered. I don’t remember exactly how much I paid but I know it was more than usual.


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