Does the back of the Certificate of Origin need to be signed when a kit changes owner

[MTSCustoms]

Hi all. Like the title says, does the Certificate of origin need to be signed on the back by the original purchaser or will the bill of sale be all I need? We didn't originally have the seller sign the back because it says for a dealer I believe...

Titling in NH if that matters, bought the unbuilt kit from the original owner in MA.

Thank you

[nuhale]

I can only speak from my personal experience in Illinois but that didn't mean anything. This was a big pain but got it sorted out. The person that does these here in Illinois kept repeating himself that "the person whos name is on the COO is responsible to title the vehicle". I repeatedly asked how could this be that when I acquired I had nothing but a metal chassis and a bunch of car parts. In the end the COO wasn't even considered in my titling process and they wouldn't accept anyway. I had to go through a surety bond title process. Thank god another builder saw my post back in august and gave me the name of someone who does this turnkey (she does a ton of salvage vehicles which is similar process). Here in Illinois they require a 1.5x apprised value bond. The cost of a bond is roughly $20 per thousand.

See if you can get in touch with someone in the custom motor vehicle department in NH. They should be able to give you some iota of direction but know this may become a puzzle wrapped in an enigma.

FFR is pretty versed in these matters. Get in touch with Sally in their office (she issues all the COO for FFR) and she may be able to help.

Good Luck!

[CFranks]

Note this is all state dependent so don’t take any of this as the gospel. I went through this with an unfinished kit in PA and general consensus was DONT sign the back. That’s for dealers only. I drew up a bill of sale that referenced the CoO number and had it notorized. Again could vary by state and many other factors but I would verify with your state from multiple sources before you sign anything.

[rich grsc]

You have to ask your state motor vehicle department. Also the opinion can change. I bought an unfinished kit, and the state said no don't have it signed. It was a long build, and when I went for title it was a big problem, the rules had changed and it needed to be signed., Luckily the original owner helped me straighten it out.

[Axoid]

Note this is all state dependent so don’t take any of this as the gospel. I went through this with an unfinished kit in PA and general consensus was DONT sign the back. That’s for dealers only. I drew up a bill of sale that referenced the CoO number and had it notorized. Again could vary by state and many other factors but I would verify with your state from multiple sources before you sign anything.

I am about to go through this, original owner is in Virginia and car was never titled by him. I am in PA.

So don't sign on the back, but instead have a Bill of Sale that references the FFR CoO details and have that Bill of Sale signed by both parties and notarized.

This happens enough I figure it shouldn't be a major issue.

[Papa]

Just be ready for a lot of confusion regardless. Most motor vehicle office employees have likely never done one of these and any deviation from the standard process will make it worse.

[michael everson]

There is nowhere to sign it. Only a Dealer reassignment area
Mike

[edwardb]

I guess not everyone believed me from the other thread on this topic. Only for dealers. Mike and others got it right. I went through the exact drama as nuhale on my #7750 Mk4 Roadster build. Bought the barely started kit from a gentleman in NH. His name was on the Certificate of Origin. I had a fully executed bill of sale. But Michigan made me treat it as a lost title, had to get a surety bond, etc. Also said the same thing -- the seller in NH should have titled it before he sold it to me. It was a 2-3 month old kit mostly still in boxes. Right.

But don't panic. Based on the volume of kits that change hands before titling, this issue only comes up occasionally. So not every state is an issue. My surety bond cost $600 - $700 as I recall. Probably more now. But saved quite a bit more than that buying the second hand kit. Other than the frustration, was still an OK deal.