A certificate of title, or a car title, is a form that shows the individual or business that owns a vehicle. Titles contain information about your vehicle, usually including the vehicle indentification number (i.e., VIN), the make and model of the vehicle, and the vehicle's manufacturer. Titles will typically identify the name and addres of the person or business that purchased the vehicle, and idenitfy if there's any money owed on the vehicle and to whom it is owed.
If you lose your vehicle's title, or it gets stolen or otherwise misplaced, you'll need to contact the DMV. The process for replacing a title varies from state to state, but in general, you will:
In most cases, the replacement title will have the word "DUPLICATE" printed on it, and the original title will become voided. If you happen to find the voided title, you may write "VOID" on the face of it, or go ahead and destroy it. You'll want to do this so that the voided title isn't used in the future to sell or transfer the vehicle's ownership.
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