What to do without title

[Mperk1824]

Hey guys I’m looking for any help or inside information on what to do here. I bought my first two jet skis and one came with a title but the 96 GTX did not come with one. I bought them from a guy in Michigan who never got a title from the guy he bought it from and just slapped a boats registration sticker on it since he only really rode in a private lake. I live in Ohio and had no idea it was gonna be this hard to get it registered without an actual title (I purchased it with the thought that a bill of sale would be enough like my snowmobiles but no). Any tips or ideas on what to do to get a title? Or who to contact really? I’ve tried talking to local BMVs and title offices but they just tell me off and say I’m screwed lol. Oh and I have also had my local police station run the Vin and it has not been reported stolen or anything fishy like that. Thanks and again, just looking for some thoughts or ideas.

 

[Trooper182]

Never buy unless there is a title in the sellers name. Best bet would probably be to part it out or find a hull in good shape with title and transplant

 

[etemplet]

Registration paperwork is all you need. Sometimes it is difficult but if you can get the name and contact that last person that registered the ski you can get a bill of sale from them. Some states require a notarized bill of sale, some do not.

I believe their should be a process to register older watercraft. I mean really, who is gonna steal and try to register a 24 year old jet ski? As you say, lots of people never register the jet skis away.... try registering a trailer where I live. Sheesh !!

 

[AKnarrowback]

Not sure about down there but in Alaska you can can do a Surety Bond in this scenario.

Basic idea is you get a hand written bill of sale with the SN number and the sellers signature on it.

You go to a qualified dealer who appraises the value of the machine and will give you documentation of the machine's value with the SN on it.

You take that bill of sale, appraisal and the machine to an insurance company that does bonding. They will sell you and "insurance policy" aka Surety Bond that covers you incase the person that holds the lost title comes to claim their property. The fee up here is one time and based on the value of the item.

After you have the bond you take it, the bill of sale, appraisal and the machine to the DMV and have the machine put into your name legally. Any sale, by you, later is a regular sale without any strings attached since it is registered as your property according to the state.

The thing to remember is the sale should be an honest one up front, no buying from questionable people, thieves, drug dealers etc. The value on the bond will repay only the market value of the machine. It's a system put in place to protect honest buyers from getting in too much trouble if they purchased the machine in good faith and someone with legal claim to the machine comes along later wanting their stolen property back.

 

[racerxxx]

This may work in your state but not in every state. Pennsylvania will throw you the middle finger if the vehicle is coming from a state that TITLES vehicles. If the state it's coming from does it from REGISTRATION all you needed is that and a bill of sale. Sounds like Ohio is the exact same as PA. I went thru this a few years back with a ski I bought from a member here. Thankfully he had given me the bill of sale from the woman he got it from, I did some googling, found a bunch of phone numbers started calling. She called me back, I needed a death cert for her late husband, she was kind enough and the woman at the pa boat and fish commish was nice enough to rush it thru once it but her desk and returned the death cert to the woman. I was already way deep into the resto time and money but got the end result. Some states don't care how old it is, money is the name of their game, lots of it.

To the OP,

There are states that will flip a title. So I know this is odd but guys title and register Honda mini trail z50's. There is a state( northeast state) where you can mail your info flip it into a title in your name and they mail it back to you. It's gonna take some digging on your end but could pay off. Here's a start

https://www.planetminis.com/threads/street-legal-z50-how-to.94171/

Just Google Street legal Honda mini trail or throw in the z50 at the end and start going back in time in Google.


Or, get a ski that was parted with a title and swap your parts over

 

[Mperk1824]

Thanks guys for the options. Obviously buying a titled hull and switching everything over would be my last preference but I’m not afraid to do it if I can come across one. As for the registration paperwork, where would I even start to find the last name the ski was registered? I still think Ohio is that pita state that wants the notarized title but I’d be willing to try it. But I’ll definitely look into the surety bond and see if I can do that and the title flipping option would be really nice if it will work. Again thanks and I’ll try some of these suggestions.

 

[etemplet]

The thing to remember is the sale should be an honest one up front, no buying from questionable people, thieves, drug dealers etc. The value on the bond will repay only the market value of the machine. It's a system put in place to protect honest buyers from getting in too much trouble if they purchased the machine in good faith and someone with legal claim to the machine comes along later wanting their stolen property back.

That makes too much sense for people in Louisiana. Nice to have a process and checks and balances are good.

 

[etemplet]

If the ski has no registration numbers you'll have a difficult time. If you call the state where they ski was last registered they can tell you with a vin number but won't give you the name if the owner.

 

[Mperk1824]

I don’t have any registration paperwork but the older registration sticker contains the registration number correct?

 

[etemplet]

I never look that close. LOL Good Luck !

 

[mikidymac]

If you have a friend in law enforcement they might be able to look it up for you. Depends on the department's policies.

 

[etemplet]

Yes... they wouldn't talk to my friend because it was a different state. Probably gotta grease a politician but we all know they ain't for sale. LOL Main thing is... don't buy anything without paperwork unless you just want it for parts.

 

[mikidymac]

True, in California you are screwed without the proper chain of title. And technically the person selling it without the title is selling it illegally as they have no right of ownership to sell it.

 

[etemplet]

You sound like the lady at the DMV... She has answers like that all the time and it pisses me off. Ha ha.

 

[MoDawg73]

I bought a 99 GTX Ltd in Ohio. It was not titled- just registered. Good for me I lived about a mile away from the guy.

What we had to do was this: the old owner had to apply for a tittle. I think he had a copy of the original purchase bill. Once he had the title, then he had to sign it over to me.

When he originally purchased it, they didn’t title PWCs. Now they do. I’d call the guy and have him get a title. Then sign it over to you.