Selling Your Boat

I noted in an earlier update that this little boat, which I have nicknamed "Lost Soul," was severely aground and unlikely to be pulled off. (Can anyone identify it? I suspect that it may be a Buccaneer; they did build small boats with small center cockpits, and they tended to have very high freeboard for their size.)

It seems possible now that this boat was deliberately deserted. As time has gone by, everything of any value has continued to be removed from it, including mast, sails, and all (all) internal fittings. It's been turned about 150º and pulled up to the beach, and everything except the hull and deck are gone. Many ports are broken.

The registration number for this boat is clearly visible on the bow, although probably everything with the hull identification number on it is gone.

Here's some idea of what is going on legally, something I hinted at once before. The true owner of this boat is the last person who paid the yearly registration. This boat is probably an "antique" by Florida standards, 30 or more years old, so the registration fee will be around $6. The size of the bill is no reason to not register it.

There can be another reason, however. Pinellas County will come along eventually and remove this boat, and pay someone to cut it up. It is a safety hazard as well as an eyesore. They don't really want to absorb the salvage expenses, and they will send a bill to the last registered owner of the boat.

If you sell me a boat, it is up to me to take those sales records to the state office and transfer the title. You can't force me to do it. You can only check and see whether or not the boat is still in your name or not, and if you sell a boat, and I urge you to do that. If the new "owner" does not transfer the title to his or her name, you're being left in legal limbo. A salvage bill is only one of several unexpected problems you could encounter one day.

This system can be "played" in a number of ways. Someone in the area once had possession of a boat he had paid another person for. The new "owner" was aware that the previous owner was dying, and the new "owner" did not transfer the title. By the time the boat ran badly aground as a real "hat trick" -- eyesore, public danger and navigational hazard -- the owner of record had passed away. The county had to absorb that salvage cost.

Personally, if I ended up in a situation where the old owner had not transferred title and I could not force them to do it (the previous owner of my boat moved out of the country, *after* transferring title), you will certainly know when you go to pay for the next year's registration. If you can't come to some resolution with the previous owner, I suggest you discuss your situation with the state office and check with an attorney. Boat registrations are not as closely controlled as car titles are. You have to watch out for yourself.

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