A Mesa woman accidentally buys a car without a “clean title” and can’t get it registered

MESA, AZ (AZFamily) — Kate St. John bought a Nissan Cube for her teenage son in 2009. Although she says the vehicle drives well, she and her son have to leave it parked in their driveway.

“I don’t know what the delay is. My son can’t drive this car because it’s not street legal without a license,” Kate told On Your Side.

Kate says the vehicle cannot be driven because she could not register it with the Arizona Motor Vehicle Division.

As a result, Kate says she renewed her paper plates three times at Arizona’s.

However, she can’t anymore because the state says Kate has reached her paper plate limit and the last one has just expired.

So the Nissan has to stay parked in her driveway.

On Your Side’s Gary Harper asked her: “What do you think would happen if you tried to drive it and got pulled over by the police?”

Kate replied: “There could be confiscation. They could confiscate my vehicle if I drive it.”

To understand why Kate couldn’t register her car for nine months, you have to start with a car lot in Mesa called Ideal Cars.

Kate says she drove past the car lot in February and saw the Nissan for sale.

“I’m like, ‘Oh my God.’ And it cost less than $5,000. I had always noted this as the amount I wanted to pay. So I said, perfect, I’ll get this car.”

Kate completed all the paperwork at Ideal Cars and drove away from the parking lot. However, she didn’t know that Ideal Cars had allegedly sold her the Nissan without a “clean title.”

“A car dealer cannot offer a car for sale without a clear title,” Kate said.

The lack of a clean title can occur for several reasons, such as someone else’s name still being on the car or someone still owing money on the vehicle.

On Your Side chronicled the history of the Nissan. Kate attempted to register the car the day after purchasing it in February. Then the next month the vehicle was mysteriously re-registered in Oklahoma.

The registration then returned to Arizona, only to be re-registered in Oklahoma. And then it happened a third time. That’s when Kate contacted On Your Side.

“I’m at my wit’s end. “I don’t know what to do at this point,” she said.

So On Your Side turned to Ideal Cars for answers.

“Well, I’m here because there’s a problem with a lady’s title. “My name is Gary Harper from On Your Side,” I said.

I spoke to the salesman who sold Kate the car, but he claimed the matter was out of his hands.

After receiving no explanation, On Your Side left Ideal Cars. But later I was able to speak on the phone with a woman who claimed to be responsible for the Ideal Cars titles.

She acknowledged that the Nissan she sold to Kate had an ownership issue and said it could take a few more months for the matter to be resolved.

This is terrible news for Kate, who says if she had known there was a title issue she would never have bought the car.

“So it’s in my driveway. I pay for it, insure it, and yet it’s not in my name and it’s still not in my name,” Kate said.

On Your Side asked the owner of Ideal Cars to call me, but the call never came.

As for this viewer, she has filed complaints with the Arizona Attorney General’s Office and the Arizona Department of Transportation.

On Your Side will let you know what happens in a follow-up report.

Before purchasing a vehicle, you can check whether there is a lien on the title by clicking “Check Vehicle Title Status” in the MVD portal. You can also visit any MVD office in Arizona.

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