Problems regestering boat

[mymaro]

I have a 12 foot aluminum boat. its not actually mine its my buddys. he hasnt used it in 2 years so i just am using/trying to. When my freind used it we just had it on a small pond on private property so we were not worried. Now i want to use it for bowfishing and want to register it. my buddy has had it for about 4-5 years he got it from his uncle who had rental property and when the renters left they left this boat behind. I went to the dmv they will not give me any information they just tell me that you have to contact the previous owners? just wondering if thier is someway to find out the owners by the mn number on the side of the boat?

[thedeadsea]

You aren't going to be able to get the owner's info unless you track them down through your buddy's uncle as the DMV/DNR will never release information, which is stupid in this case. I had the same thing happen with a shady dealership who wouldn't transfer a title for me one time (they strung me along for almost a year with excuses) until I threatened legal action. I tried to get in touch of the prevous owner through them as I was going to just have him sign the boat over to me. Big shock that dealership isn't in business any more.

This is in the grey area but I have heard that some guys will often register boats as being a first time registration. The owner has to provide a written testimony of how long they have owned the boat and testify that the boat has never been licensed before in that state (i.e it was never licensed because it has always been on a private pond).

[fishwater]

I bought a cabin in NE MN a dozen years ago that had a small aluminum boat in the bushes that was in decent shape. I told the DMV that I salvaged it and they issued a new title after I filled out some paperwork. I think I might have fibbed about some repair work done, don't quite remember the specifics.

[pinkfloyd4ever]

Similar results with mine, it was given to my uncle in exchange for bad debt, my uncle wrote a simple paragraph something like rec'd boat in exchange for x dollars. As owner I am transferring all rights to me. Wrote down the hull ID number and year and make of boat.

He had the letter notarized, gave it to me, i went to DMV and no problem. That was 12 years ago though so maybe that helped

[shizzy]

I got a sticker for a Canoe about years ago. It was my friend's Girlfriend's Dead Ex Husband's old canoe. He died and she was left with his estate. He was a pack rat so no one knew where it came from.

it was broken, bent and full of holes. I patched and painted it and strapped it to the roof of my car and had my camera full of pictures of me rebuilding it and went to the DMV.

I told the DMV I got it from a friend for free because he owed me $40 and it had been left by a previous renter.

there was no registration numbers or sticker on the canoe and the serial number (Pre Hull ID #) didnt produce any hits in her system. all it had was part of a sticker that read "boundry waters 74-75". I musta sweet talked the young lady on the other side of the desk somehow, because she entered in the info, we made up a model year and she handed me a sticker but gave me a stern "dont do this again" talk.

I think I did mention being broke with more time then money, this being all I could afford for a boat, spending all summer working on it and really wanting to put it in the water so I could go fishing.

[jwmiller33]

Similar results with mine, it was given to my uncle in exchange for bad debt, my uncle wrote a simple paragraph something like rec'd boat in exchange for x dollars. As owner I am transferring all rights to me. Wrote down the hull ID number and year and make of boat.

He had the letter notarized, gave it to me, i went to DMV and no problem. That was 12 years ago though so maybe that helped

i think trying to do something along these lines is your best bet. keep trying different dmv's if they get suspicious

[Pat K]

Why's everybody talking to the the DMV?

Boats are registered with the DNR.

Trailers with the DMV.

A Deputy Registrar handles the paperwork for both.

[mymaro]

so we scratched some paint off made out an old number last time it was registered was in 1967-1968.... for the mn####_## number on the side went back to dmv and came back in the system as still registered but to a mid 40s person they will not give me the name of person so i can contact them and see if they want it back or if i can keep it.

[bigstx]

i am having a simular problem. what about the serial number for registration can't they tell if the boat has been registered in the past

[bigstx]

actually you just go to a license center to register them both

[Valv]

Call the DNR directly they might be able to help you.

Many times license offices are the problem, not the State, they seem to make up rules as they please depending on the time of day.

[broken_line]

well you can either track the owner down or say its never been registered before as a new boat that was in the shed found under the rubble.. what i did for my duck boat.. which had nothing to tell what it was no stickers no ratings plate no id at all.. so we went to the court house and said the boat was never registered before. and got new registration numbers and a sticker..

[Pat K]

Valv, it isn't so much that people who work at license offices make up rules. It is the people who come in with no proof of ownership other than posession and expect a clerk with no power to override the states computers to bend the rules to suit thier needs.

When there is a question of ownership of a boat you have to deal directly with the DNR. The licence offices are deputy registrars that handle the transfers and renewals for people who have the documents required by the DNR for boats and other off road vehicles or the DMV for on road vehicles. There are state and federal privacy laws that prevent them from giving out info on the previous owners, you need to get that from the state.

[rmk600]

I went to the deputy register to license a snowmobile that was not license for one year and I didn’t have the renewal notice so I just gave them the license number off the sled. (I know the people that work there and they know me). The lady run the license and said that the snowmobile was not in my name. She showed me the computer, the sled that I was trying to license had current license and had changed names 2 times since my ownership. I run home and got the VIN off the tunnel and it matched the registration of the sled. She changed it back to my name and gave me current license for it. (I wonder what will happen when I need license again).

Then you wonder why thieves like to steal DNR licensed toys!!

[Gordie]

I bought a boat that was an old duck hunting boat last year and went to regester it and told them that I bought it at a garage sale and that it was never regestered cause it was a duck hunting boat and thay asked for the numbers on the boat which there wasnt any so they asked who the maker of the boat was only name on the boat was maden so that was it 5 min later I had tags and a number for the boat.

[slabchaser]

Im not sure anymore but I believe once something was left on someones property without any attempt to recover becomes the property owners. that part shouldnt be a problem i think.

[broken_line]

Im not sure anymore but I believe once something was left on someones property without any attempt to recover becomes the property owners. that part shouldnt be a problem i think.

hhmmm theres a nice lund with 115 sitting on my uncles land for 4 years =)

[shizzy]

Why's everybody talking to the the DMV?

Boats are registered with the DNR.

Trailers with the DMV.

A Deputy Registrar handles the paperwork for both.

I get my boat registered, transfer titles and get my license renewed at the same place. I call it the DMV.

[pinkfloyd4ever]

same here. And I am back in the same boat so to speak, my uncle took in trade another boat in exchange for bad debt, this boat has no hull ID # and hasn't been licensed in years, guy he took it in exchange for has no paperwork, so waiting to see if the guy can find paperwork for my uncle to title it.

[jabug]

had a boat that i got no way to see who owned it just went in and said i made it and no problem getting stickers

[Jackpine Rob]

If you've got old registration numbers you can call the DNR. A few years back I found a boat floating just above some rapids, so I lassoed it, towed it back to our cabin, and called the DNR on Monday.

They gave me the name of the owner. I knew the family, called them up, and all was well.

With my old duck boat that I picked up at a farm auction about 25 years ago, I couldn't find any identifying numbers. Searched for a hull ID, couldn't make out any old stickers, and finally went into the License Bureau and threw myself on their mercy.

They had me fill out a form certifying that I had owned the boat for X number of years, there was no hull ID, and the make and approximate year of the boat. 5 minutes later I walked out with the registration.

[mymaro]

Man some of you guys got away good i walked in and said i need to register this boat thier is no numbers except for some old mn numbers we know the fist number is a 8 but the rest are a guess all the lady said i need:

year....me "ummmm yup shes mid 40s to 50s"

make....me "ummmm aluminum"

model....me "well its pointed in the front"

vin.... me "yea its vin is simply "1"

engine...me "paddle"

propultion...me "upper body strength"

metariel...me "refer to answer #2"

design.....me "pretty sure its still pointed"

inboard/outboard...me "ya got me on this one i think it used to have a 350 in it"

length....me "supposed to be 14 i guess but measures 13'3"

I have tried registering this boat 3 times they wont let me i want to actually give the government money for once and they refuse. so i finally just took it out i abide by the laws but this has made me so mad that i said screw it if i get stopped they can take the boat. all i got to say to the officer is "good luck registering it"

I am gonna trying registering it tomorrow again at a different place and telling them its homemade if that doesn't work im liable to sit in jail overnight.

[Valv]

Call DNR in St Paul, don't waste your time with the deputies.

All they do at the registrar is read what the form ask them to fill out.

DNR will help you.