Where to Search if a Car was Stolen

[Sheldon S.]

I am looking at buying a car and wondering if there is a way to check to see if the car is clear as far as it being a stolen vehicle and also where to check for liens. the car is in Arizona but was last in Wash. State.
Thanks in advance.
Sheldon

[Kevin Whiteley]

Re: Where to Search if a Car was Stolen

You should be able to check to see if the car is stolen by going by your local police/sheriff's department and asking an officer to check the VIN. He should give you a "yes" or "no", but won't (don't ask) give you any owner info. At least, he shouldn't. If he balks, just let him or his supervisor know that you are concerned about receiving stolen property.

Checking for liens is going to be a little bit more difficult. Liens are registered at the county clerks office. Most are searchable by owner name or lienholders name, not by VIN. That part is easy, the problem lies in determining where exactly the car has been. If there is no lien in the car's current county or last county, you would probably be OK. However, don't take this as a guarantee.

Good luck.

[James B.]

Re: Where to Search if a Car was Stolen

That's exactly what I did with my '59- I called the local police, and they ran both a local and national search on the VIN and had no records indicating it was stolen. I took the title to Motor Vehicle and registered it in my name. Done! 8^]

Regards,

Jim Brady III
1959 Corvette Registry, Webmaster

http://59vette.cjb.net