If you discover that your ex forged your signature on a car title for a vehicle you own, immediate action is critical to protect your rights as the legal owner.
Forgery to transfer ownership or take loans against a car is considered a felony offense.
Fortunately, you can take steps to report the crime, investigate the forgery, recover losses, and potentially get your car title back.
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Key Steps to Take After Discovering Title Forgery
Upon learning of any potential forgery involving your car title, your first move should be to:
- File a police report. Forgery is a crime, so contacting law enforcement quickly starts a paper trail and investigation. Provide cops with evidence like recordings of your ex admitting guilt.
- Contact your state’s DMV fraud department. Report the situation and fraudulent title transfer. Share ownership documentation to potentially have the title flagged as forged.
- Consult an attorney about legal options. A lawyer can help you recover losses in civil court or represent you if criminal charges are filed.
- Gather evidence proving ownership, like past registration, insurance cards, payment records. This supports your claims.
Additional urgent actions, depending on the specific circumstances:
- Act fast if you suspect your ex may commit further fraud, like taking equity loans against the car using the forged title.
- If your ex sold the car to an innocent third party, you can potentially sue your ex for financial compensation but likely cannot reclaim the vehicle itself.
Getting the Forged Title Fixed Through Legal Action
While procedures vary by state, below are common options for attempting to get your ownership restored by replacing invalid documentation created through forgery:
- Civil lawsuit for losses. With an attorney, sue your ex for damages from fraud/forgery – including compensation for the car’s value.
- Criminal charges. If evidence proves forgery, the police may choose to file criminal charges against your ex.
- Replacement title. By presenting proof of forgery to the DMV and petitioning the court, you may convince them to void the existing title and issue a new title in your name. However, this can be complex, costly, and time-consuming.
- Vehicle impound. In some cases, the car is impounded as evidence until disputed ownership gets resolved legally. But again, getting your specific vehicle back if it changed hands can be unlikely.
Key Takeaways If You Discover Title Forgery
To summarize, if your signature proves forged during an illegal car title transfer or ownership claim by an ex:
- Contact law enforcement immediately to start an investigation by reporting the felony forgery.
- Speak to an attorney ASAP to understand your civil and legal rights plus options to recover losses.
- Notify your state’s DMV fraud investigation unit regarding the specific forged documentation.
- Gather and preserve evidence (payments, registrations) backing your ownership claim.
- Be aware that recovering the specific vehicle itself may be difficult if already sold.
The key next steps are filing the police report to trigger investigation of the criminal actions, proving forged documentation to the DMV, and consulting an attorney to recover maximum damages. Acting quickly helps minimize further fraud-related risks or equity losses on an illegally transferred car. Please comment below with any other questions!
Sources For This Article:
- https://www.quora.com/What-should-I-do-when-my-ex-forged-my-signature-on-my-car-bill-of-sale-and-then-sold-it-and-then-he-forged-my-signature-on-the-bill-of-sale-for-the-manufactured-home-we-bought-together
- https://www.avvo.com/legal-answers/ex-forged-signature-on-car-title-what-can-i-do–2499629.html
- https://www.reddit.com/r/legaladvice/comments/qsqsoc/stole_my_car_and_forged_the_title_with_my/
- https://www.reddit.com/r/legaladvice/comments/15ge64f/ex_forged_my_name_on_a_title/
- https://ask-a-lawyer.lawyers.com/criminal/what-legal-action-can-i-take-if-a-friend-forged-my-signature-to-sign-the-title-of-my-car-over-to-them-1565208.html
