Do dealerships actually take ownership of the car when it is traded in or does Owner #1 fill out the title with the space for the name of Owner #2 blank? Then when O#2 purchases the car, the dealership inserts O#2’s name on the transfer portion of the title?

Good question, but I'm going to assume they do take ownership. They can't sell it unless the title is signed over to them, proving they own the car. Right? I dunno!

In the states I am familiar with, there is a place to record info about the trail of possession, I guess you would call it, but dealers are not owners per se and so vehicles are not registered in the dealer's name.

There should be a record, but dealers don't always dot all the i's and cross all the t's. They usually handle the title transfer, but exceptions happen. I got a call one day asking me to help with getting the title on a car sold near me but currently out of state. I dug a bit and found out the buyer said they would take care of the title and registration because it was going out of state, but she didn't. And it became a huge headache for the family member she gave the car to. Dealers don't like things like that happening -- or accidents, tickets or other fines happening and the new owner not being on the title. But it can happen. It could also be that the car was stolen off the dealer lot and never registered. Dealers don't actually take titled ownership, at least not in Texas -- not sure about there. They take ownership under a special status that is allowed so they don't pay registration and title and then have to change it again for the short time they have the car. They also don't pay property taxes on the vehicles -- so if the sale is not handled properly, the previous owner is still the owner of record as far as the state knows. But you have paperwork -- and the dealer does, for the sale and trade-in of your car. They will find out if they have paperwork for a subsequent sale or a theft report.

Good info, thank you!

Just found this on Quora: If a dealership buys a car and sells it, do they have to change the title in their name? "We are talking about the US only in this answer. No, the title is not put in the dealerships name unless they want to title and register it in their name. On the back of a title there are sections labeled ”reassignment”. When they take a car in on trade, or purchase it outright, the titled owner signs it. When the dealership sells the car they fill out the reassignment area."

Imagine if there weren't any records for a used car once it leaves the lot, there would be thousands and thousands of people like myself who could be liable in a lawsuit without even knowing the car wasn't transferred to the new owner, or the dealer. No matter who's driving the car, the owner of the car could be taken to the cleaners. I'm glad it's been 3 years and I already spoke to the detective for my alibi. :)

Mtn, I think you were telling me what I just quoted above & it didn't register. Good pun, huh? :)

OH this is one of the scenarios my dad used to GRILL me on when discussing buying and selling of cars and the vital importance of a title transfer. You know you are on the hook financially if that car is involved in any sort of ANYTHING?!

Oakley, if you have VIN, which you should, you could probably run a Carfax report on it. You’d have to pay for it, but it’s a nominal charge.

IMO a car with that high mileage would be sold at auction. So, it would be an independent dealer. They guy probably bought it, paid cash, and never registered it/insured it. We have a huge issue here withe people riding around with ”temporary” paper tags which are supposed to be temporary, but there are people who sell them on ebay and others who make people pay a fee to them to renew their paper tags, which, of course, is illegal. Or he used a stolen tag, too

Other issues we have people move between the two states here and never reregister their cars. We require state inspection here, so people are trying to avoid that too. Both states require car tax. .

Oakley was the car involved in a crime? Did they find it dumped in the middle of a corn field? Was it stolen off the dealer lot and just found? Lots of missing information - didn't the detective tell you anything more?

You know you are on the hook financially if that car is involved in any sort of ANYTHING?!

Sorry, that is not true. Oak did her part.

Really, mtnrd? I would say the same as Arcy based on my "legal education" via Judge Judy. According to her, if the car is titled in your name whether you have possession of it or not, if it's in an accident, you're responsible as the car owner. Certainly there have been enough cases on there where the purchaser has failed to register the car in their name and they rack up parking tickets, the tickets go to the car owner, not the current driver. It's only through a court case can the plaintiff get reimbursed if they can find the current user. If they can't, I don't know what the owner can do but pay for the tickets.

I think that varies by state. Here in California, it is the seller's responsibility to file a release of liability with the Department of Motor Vehicles when transferring title to a vehicle. Once you sell a vehicle, you have no control over whether or not the buyer actually completes the transfer and puts the car in their name. From the DMV website .... "When you sell or transfer your vehicle or vessel to another party, you are required to submit a Notice of Transfer and Release of Liability (NRL). This notifies DMV that ownership of the vehicle has changed and protects you from liability for parking violations, traffic violations, and civil litigation involving the vehicle."

I sold a car once and received a bill from the Toll Roads for charges against the license plate. I provided a copy of my release of liability and the charges were cancelled. On another transfer, I received a parking ticket that was issued after I'd sold the car. Again, I provided the release of liability and the charges were dropped.

I had the same experience as Jellytoast.

Annie, I believe Mtn. is right. If I did a private sale I could be liable for damages, but with a dealership I'm pretty sure we're safe, especially after three years and I already gave the detective all info. I'm sure there's a paper trail someplace. Besides, if I could be in trouble I'm sure he would have told me. He was just shocked the dealer's name wasn't anywhere on the title saying it was "transferred" or whatever.

Arcy, the legal system isn't as black and white as you suggest. I'm a 100% positive this has happened many many times, and if the person traded at a dealership, that's even better.

LOL Dlm! He alluded to the car being in a bad neighborhood & I'm sure there was suspicious goings on for him run a check on the car. And I could sort of tell that he may have the perp in custody or the car was involved in a crime. Something was going down to run a check on the car.

One time DH & I took a day trip and stopped at a roadside diner in a small town. Our young & chatty waitress started telling us about her sister's recent accident. She was in a parking space changing her baby's diaper in the backseat while she stood in front of the open car door. A teenager who was driving his grandmother's car ran right into the door which shut on her, and she was badly hurt. She did nothing wrong. DH gave the waitress his card, they hired him, and he won a significant settlement for the mom. Don't you lawyers love how some clients just fall into your hands? :)

Memo to self. Do not let my grandchildren drive my car when they turn 16.

In my state, both parties whose names are on the title would have to sign before ownership could be legally transferred to a dealer or private party.

Judge Judy??? LOL!

Oakley's husband is a lawyer, I'm sure he knows the specifics of care sales/transfers for the state of Oklahoma.