VIN - contact info for previous owner?

I need to know if it’s possible to use a VIN to track down the previous owner of the ‘84 Fiero I’ve been working on recently. No, not because I want to yell at him.

I bought this car almost five and a half years ago (September of 2004) and had it towed to my place as it had unknown clutch/tranny problems. It’s been sitting in my back yard ever since, up until a couple of months ago when I trailered it to Clynt’s place to swap out the tranny. The previous owner and I signed the appropriate paperwork, but I never did register the car in my name. The Fiero is now ready to drive, and guess what... I can’t find the paperwork!

I vaguely remember putting the registration etc in an envelope for "safe keeping" years ago, and I suspect it’s around somewhere, but I can’t find it.

Man oh man I feel so stupid. I can’t insure the car because I have no paperwork to show ICBC for it. As far as ICBC is concerned, this Fiero still belongs to the previous owner. Of course I can’t remember the fella’s name after all this time, so I can’t just phone him up to re-do the paperwork.

ICBC says there actually is a procedure I can go through where I have to get a document notarized, and then ICBC will contact the previous owner to have him contact me. Apparently this all takes about a month!

Man oh man, have I mentioned yet how stupid I feel.

So back to my original question - Is there a way I can use the VIN to contact the previous owner directly (without jumping through all the hoops that ICBC insists I have to)?

If you know of a way of doing it, but would prefer not mentioning it in a public forum, please please please send me a PM. Thanks.

 

This info is also no doubt available at the click of a mouse to anyone working as an insurance broker.

Someone here might work in such a position, or know of someone who does.

 

Privacy Act prevents them giving out details like this.  Not even sure agents can get it.

If you had a car abandoned on your property, you could make application to find out who owned it. That might help.

If the guy has died or left the country, you are in a barrel if shzt!

On the cars coming int the contry that need restoration before they can be mechanically inspected, they will not transfer before they are restored and inspected, maybe years and many thousands of dollars later.

I've told them how silly that is and they respond that they don't want anyone to be able to get cheap storage insurance for a hulk.  I told them easy - on cars coming into BC, simply note that they can't be insured, even for storage, until inspected and licencable, but fer Krisake do the transfer of title so people know they own them.  If you take a long time to restore a car and happen to lose the paperwork....

Hope the originl owner is still around for you!

Just a thought...

If you frequent a particular autoplan office (as I do) where they pretty much know you by face - could you not have THEM contact the previous owner (since we know THEY have access to the info), and have him contact you?

Then there's been no dissemination of info on their part, and you still get what you need.
 

(and let this be a lesson to everyone else to FILE your stuff!  I still have the original APV-9T transfer papers from my 1978 Suzuki that I bought in 1979!)

Because ICBC is known for it's warm and helpful nature, don't you find?

I was back at my insurance agent's today renewing the insurance on my GT. I didn't want to renew the insurance on this Fiero, but I had no choice as the '84 is still in legal limbo.

Dr.Fiero wrote: If you frequent a particular autoplan office (as I do) where they pretty much know you by face - could you not have THEM contact the previous owner (since we know THEY have access to the info), and have him contact you? Then there's been no dissemination of info on their part, and you still get what you need.

I begged and pleaded with the staff there to look up the previous owner's name of the '84 using the VIN, and then phoning the fella and asking him to please phone me. They didn't want to "bend" the rules without checking with the owner of the insurance agency. They got the owner of the insurance agency on the phone and he was sympathetic, but he informed us that the VIN by itself wouldn't be enough to do me any good. Sure enough, when the staff actually tried to see what they could find, the VIN alone wasn't enough to get us anywhere. At least the first three letters of the previous owners last name are also required. Since I don't remember his name, I'm still screwed.

Damn it, damn it, damn it...

 

HUZZAH! In my similar story, I still haven't gotten my GMC Sierra put into my name (In paper, the old owner still owns the vehicle), but I did find a Chevy 350 for free, and am looking for a supercharger to mount on it after.

Torque = Le ridiculous.

Congradulations Patty!

Capt Fiero wrote: Just hope that now that you have it fixed he doesn't refuse to sign the papers.

Wouldn't that be peachy!

I believe this fella's fine, but yeah, I'll be glad when this is all done properly and legal.

 

Romeo wrote: Pat: Yeah, I just finished putting in about five thousand dollars, and hundreds of hours making the car perfect.

Just to dispel any rumours before they get started...

No, I did not put anything like $5000 into this Fiero.

No, the car is not perfect.

Ummm... yeah, by the time I'm "finished" with this Fiero I probably will have put hundreds of hours into it.

Romeo wrote: Guy: Yeah, I just had some fool put about five thousand dollars, and hundreds of hours into making my car perfect.

Ain't gonna happen.