Pennsylvania Code › Title 58 - RECREATION › Part II - FISH AND BOAT COMMISSION › Subpart C - BOATING › Chapter 93 - REGISTRATION AND NUMBERING › Subchapter B - TITLING OF BOATS › Section 93.110 - Boats that are junked, destroyed, lost, stolen or abandoned

Current through Register Vol. 54, No. 28, July 13, 2024
(a)
Reporting requirements.
The destruction, loss, theft or abandonment of a boat titled under this
					 subchapter shall be reported to the Commission within 5 days. The recovery of a
					 boat that is lost, stolen or abandoned shall be reported to the Commission
					 within 5 days of recovery.
(b)
Acquiring title to boats abandoned on private property.
(1) Subject to the provisions of this
					 subsection, a landowner, a lessee or an agent may acquire title to any boat
					 abandoned on his land or waters immediately adjacent to it. This subsection
					 applies only to boats that have been abandoned on the property of a person
					 other than the owner of the boat for at least 3 months.
(2) A person desiring to obtain a certificate
					 of title for an abandoned boat shall provide written notice to the Commission
					 of intent to obtain title to the boat. The notice shall, at a minimum, set
					 forth the date and place the boat was abandoned, a description of the boat,
					 including the make, model and year, and, if known, the Hull Identification
					 Number, registration number, temporary decal number and other identifying
					 data.
(3) If a boat abandoned on a
					 person's lands or waters has a Hull Identification Number, registration number,
					 temporary decal number or other identifying indicia, the Commission will notify
					 the boat's owner and lienholder, if any, that the boat has been abandoned and
					 that the requester desires to acquire title to it.
(4) Upon receipt of the written request, the
					 Commission will notify the owner and the lienholder by certified mail that
					 someone desires to acquire title to the boat and if ownership is not claimed
					 and the boat removed within 30 days, the Commission may, upon proper
					 application and payment of fees, issue a certificate of title in the name of
					 the person desiring to acquire title. If the owner does not respond, the
					 Commission may notify the requester to proceed under paragraph (5). The
					 Commission is not required to send a letter if it cannot identify a boat's
					 owner or lienholder or ascertain an address. If the abandoned boat has a
					 registration number, temporary decal number or other identifying indicia,
					 evidencing that the boat is registered in another state, the Commission will
					 notify the other state and ask it to notify the boat's owner and lienholder by
					 certified mail that someone desires to acquire title to the boat. The other
					 state's notice shall provide that if ownership is not claimed and the boat
					 removed within 30 days, the Commission may, upon proper application and payment
					 of fees, issue a certificate of title in the name of the person desiring to
					 acquire title. The other state is not required to send a letter if it cannot
					 identify a boat's owner or lienholder or ascertain an address. When the other
					 state notifies the owner and lienholder, if known, as provided in this section
					 and advises the Commission that the transfer of title to the requester is
					 unobjectionable to the other state, the Commission may notify the requester to
					 proceed under paragraph (5).
(5)
					 Regardless of whether the abandoned boat has a Hull Identification Number,
					 registration number, temporary decal number or other identifying indicia, the
					 person desiring to acquire title shall place a notice in a newspaper of general
					 circulation published in the county where the boat is located for 3 consecutive
					 days, describing the boat, its location, the date it was abandoned and any
					 identifying number. The person shall state in the notice that if the boat is
					 not claimed and removed within 30 days after publication in the newspaper, he
					 will apply for title to the boat in his name.
(6) After the notices described in paragraphs
					 (4) and (5) have expired, but no earlier than 60 days after the person desiring
					 to obtain title has first notified the Commission, the person may apply to the
					 Commission for a certificate of title to the boat in his name as required by
					 this subchapter and accompanied by the following affidavits:
(i) A statement made under penalty of law
					 that the boat has been abandoned for at least 3 months.
(ii) Proof that the applicant provided notice
					 as set forth in paragraphs (2)-(4).
(iii) Proof that a notice was published in a
					 newspaper as required by paragraph (5).
(7) In cases involving boats registered in
					 other states, the Commission may extend the 60-day period described in
					 paragraph (6) to 180 days.
(8) Upon
					 receipt of the material required by this subsection and the payment of any fees
					 required by law, the Commission will issue a certificate of title to the boat
					 to the applicant. Issuance of a certificate of title divests any other person
					 of any interest in the boat.