trailer transfer being a pain

[boatman37]

not so much a question as it is just me venting. bought my boat and trailer 2 years ago from a guy in Ohio (I'm in PA). Ohio does issue a title with the trailer. this trailer was custom built in 1986 (still in great shape). the PO signed the bill of sale and gave me the original paperwork that includes the VIN and all weights (shipping weight (1500lbs), GVWR (8000lbs), and capacity (9984lbs)). i went to a notary when i first bought it and got the boat transferred but he said he could not transfer it without a title. waited until a few months ago to follow up (only use it twice a year) and checked with a different notary who said they could transfer it but need the PO there cause he signed the bill of sale but did not get it notarized. they also said they need the trailer there. so i contact the PO and he agrees to meet me there but can't do it for 2 weeks. i called the notary again today to verify they need the trailer and they tell me they need it to see the VIN tag. i tell them there is no VIN tag and no numbers anywhere on the trailer. they then tell me they cannot transfer it then. so i call AAA and get more info and they tell me to call PA DOT. called them and they tell me i need a form MV41 and have to take it to a PA enhanced inspection station and have to have a police officer sign off on the VIN (probably to verify it isn't stolen). not sure what all the enhanced inspection involves (PA DOT said they just need to verify the weights for the state to put on the new title and the new trailer tag). my trailer is a tri-axle but only has brakes on 2 of the axles. my understanding is that in PA all axles are required to have brakes? now i'm concerned this will be an issue. ugh....remind me to never buy another trailer from Ohio. hope the enhanced inspection doesn't flag the

 

[roscoe]

ugh....remind me to never buy another trailer from Ohio.

Remind me to never live in a state (PA or IL) that makes life so difficult.

Good Luck.

 

[boatman37]

Remind me to never live in a state (PA or IL) that makes life so difficult.

Good Luck.

Yep. PA is quite a pain with red tape political crap.

Last night I found a place that sells replacement VIN tags. I have all the required info on the notarized manufacturers statement of origin from when the PO bought it. Wondering if i can just order a new placard and have them print all of the info on it? would save me the hassle

 

[wrvond]

My boat and trailer came from Ohio as well. The trailer is a 1996 model and the data plate information wore off years ago. With a title, but no registration, I had to have a cop come out to the house, look at the trailer, decide it is the same one as described on the title, and then sign off on some form. I was then able to register it here in West Virginia. Not too terrible as far as having to jump through hoops goes, but I still feel your pain.
Don't know about the brake situation in PA.

 

[gm280]

I have no idea about either of those stated and their requirements. However, when I had to get my old trailer that I bought registered after I totally rebuilt it, they issued me a VIN or trailer plate to install and registered it as "home built". That was their idea and not mine. A State Patrol Officer actually came out to my house and did a very quick glance at the trailer and signed the paperwork on the spot. But since I did basically rebuilt near about everything, I guess it is closer to a home built then the original. Does your state have such trailer options like a home built trailer option? If so, maybe that would have been an easier route. :noidea:

 

[boatman37]

they do but that involves the enhanced state inspection (in addition to the police coming to look at it), which i'm a little concerned with it only having brakes on 2 axles. i am going to go see the inspection guy tomorrow and take all of my paperwork. i know i dealt with him before on a car i bought. basically anything with a salvage title that you try to re-register has to go through the enhanced safety inspection. the car i bought had a couple of small issues after all repairs were done, one was the airbag light was on (could have been very important) and the other was the cruise control didn't work. e would not pass it until both of these were fixed. the car was a 2001 and this was about 2010. i guess these inspections are extremely thorough.

i just spoke with the PO who bought the trailer new and he said there was never any type of tag on it. he custom ordered it from a place called Olympic Trailer in Hubbard, Ohio in 1986 but i can't find any information on them so i'm guessing they went out of business.

 

[dingbat]

they do but that involves the enhanced state inspection (in addition to the police coming to look at it), which i'm a little concerned with it only having brakes on 2 axles.

What does the law say? Maryland say "brakes" on anything over #3500. Say's nothing about the number of axles that require brakes.

The VIN label on my Loadrite was a sticker. The lettering had worn off long ago and Loadrite wouldn't reissue a VIN label unless I gave them the info on the missing label. It was easier to apply for a VIN for a "home made" trailer. Had to get the trailer inspected anyhow so no big deal

 

[ezmobee]

I refuse to buy any vehicles out of state again (I'm also in PA). Had a huge issue with a camper bought in MD where the manufacture had mis-punched ONE letter on the tongue metal VIN tag. Had to contact the manufacturer to get it cleared up. There were two other VINs in/on the camper that matched the title. On my boat from MD the trailer VIN sticker was worn. Was forced to order a new one of those from the manufacturer as well. Of course these things required multiple trips with large trailers to notaries. They are looser with the VIN verifications on PA to PA transfers. Also PA Fish & Boat is wonderful to deal with. It's just PennDOT that sucks.

 

[boatman37]

well went to the enhanced inspection place today and it went pretty well. the manufacturers statement of origin has all the weights listed and it is notarized so they were ok with that and just used those numbers. now i need to have a police officer sign off then take all that to the notary and they will submit everything to the state. shouldn't be too bad if all goes well.

 

[boatman37]

update: went to the notary about a month ago and met with the original owner and got his signature notarized. received my title last week and my registration and license plate today so it is 100% legal! all in all wasn't that bad but it was a pain trying to figure out what steps i needed to take

 

[On Holiday]

Glad to hear you are now legal.