PHOENIX – Have you sold your car online, to a person down the street, to a family member? Don’t forget to report that sale to the Arizona Department of Transportation Motor Vehicle Division by filing a Sold Notice.

It’s not only the law; it can save you trouble – and money. 

A Sold Notice should be completed within 10 calendar days of selling, trading in, donating or otherwise transferring ownership of a vehicle. It’s free and can be done anytime at ServiceArizona.com. 

This notice ensures that MVD and law enforcement have a record of who currently owns the vehicle. If the vehicle is found abandoned, without updated sold notice information the previous owner will still be listed as the current owner and could get the bill for towing and other fees.

If a vehicle is abandoned on certain federal or state lands, owners can be charged $600 or more with storage fees also possible. Costs are similar for vehicles left on private property.

There also have been cases in which the prior owner of a vehicle without a Sold Notice on file has been contacted by law enforcement because that vehicle has been used during a crime. 

In such cases, there are ways for you to prove that you sold the vehicle. But filing a Sold Notice will save you that trouble.

“A Sold Notice protects consumers,” said MVD Stakeholder Relations Manager Jennifer Bowser-Richards. “If the vehicle is sold and is later in a crash or used in a crime, or if it’s simply abandoned, the MVD will have a record of the sale. That means a former owner won’t be responsible for abandoned vehicle fees, or worse called into court to explain why the vehicle was used in a crime or crash they had nothing do to with.”

The process is simple via ServiceArizona.com:

• Enter vehicle and seller’s information
• Enter the buyer’s information and the date vehicle was sold
• View and/or print a confirmation
• Complete an optional survey

MVD also keeps an eye out for unscrupulous unlicensed or licensed dealers who may attempt to sell a vehicle as though they are actually a private seller. When a vehicle is sold by a private owner to a dealer, a Sold Notice will alert MVD if that dealer attempts to re-sell the vehicle privately, and ADOT’s Enforcement and Compliance Division will investigate.

For more information about abandoned vehicles and Sold Notices, please visit azdot.gov/mvd.