How Do You Register A Car Waiting For Title

One couple waited nearly a year to become a championship on the vehicle they purchased.

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A lot of people bought used cars and trucks during the pandemic. And in some cases, COVID is being blamed for delays in buyers getting titles to those vehicles.

It happened to Arizonans Debra and Greg McKenna.

They bought a used truck at Henry Brown GMC in Gilbert. Merely two months afterward, they were concerned that they nevertheless didn't have the title.

"Where is our license plate? Where are our tags? Our paper plates are running out," Debra says.

A title is of import. It can testify if the vehicle is damaged or defective. Information technology shows any unpaid liens that could prevent registration.

And, of form, it shows ownership. Without a championship, there could be insurance bug if at that place'due south an blow. And the McKennas say they couldn't annals their car or go permanent license plates.

They say it became a huge hassle.

"Nosotros had to call them every time, 'today information technology runs out, tin you please email me the tags?'" Debra says.

The McKennas say they never got a clear reason for the months of delays. Could it accept been a loan on the auto that wasn't paid off?

It seems like the dealer was blaming COVID issues.

In an email to the Arizona Attorney General's office, Henry Chocolate-brown GMC said, "these are unprecedented times... Every service we apply is currently several months behind in processing paperwork."

Simply the McKennas bought the truck in December of 2019. That was months before COVID took hold.

Land police force says, "The dealer has just 30 days to transfer the vehicle to the customer'southward name before they are assessed penalties."

In emails to the McKennas, the dealer talks of giving them a new 2020 or 2021 model truck because of the inconvenience.

Simply that didn't happen.

The McKennnas say the dealer promised three payments since the couple had financed role of the deal and was paying on that loan.

They say they merely got one payment.

"Actually, all they were doing was stalling until they got us a title because they sold united states of america a truck they didn't have a title for," Debra says.

By the time they let me know, the McKennas finally did get their title.

Information technology was 10 months after they bought the truck.

Why sell a car without a title? We don't know. After emails and calls, a spokesperson for Henry Brown GMC said simply, "no comment."

So, what can you do in a similar situation?

First, if you're paying cash, don't go out without a title.

If a bank is involved or you decide to go along despite the delay, you lot can file a complaint with the Arizona Department of Transportation'south (ADOT) Motor Vehicles Partition.

An ADOT spokesperson explained the process in an email:

"The Dealer has 30 days to transfer the vehicle to the client name before they are assessed penalties. The customer should be issued a 45-day Temporary Registration Permit (TRP) that allows the client to legally drive the vehicle until the plates and registration are received. If the client hasn't received it in that time frame, they can become back to the dealership to obtain a 30 full general use permit. If it'south nonetheless not received after that timeframe, the customer may become to the MVD to file a dealer complaint in which they would purchase a 90-day allow while the instance goes through the investigation process."

Debra says she simply wanted real answers from the dealer.

"Had they been honest up forepart and said 'expect, we screwed upwardly, nosotros're working on it, we will get your title,' nosotros would have been fine. I wouldn't have complained," she says.

Learn more than about your rights when buying a used machine.