How do I check the vehicles included in a business sale?

A truck parked at the shop may be registered to the business, to the owner personally or to a lessor. Do not rely on the balance sheet to tell you which. For each vehicle in the deal, settle four questions: who is the registered owner, whether anyone has registered a claim against it, whether it is owned or leased, and what has to happen for the registration to move to you.

Match each vehicle to a registered owner

Ask the seller for a schedule of every vehicle with its VIN, plate and the name on the ownership documents. Compare those names with the seller named in the purchase agreement. A vehicle registered to the owner personally, or to a lessor, needs a different conversation, so ask your lawyer who must sign. In Ontario, the used vehicle information package includes a registration history showing present and previous owners, plus vehicle lien information, according to the Government of Ontario’s used vehicle information package page.

Search for liens by serial number

Ask whether the registry search you run covers the vehicle itself, not only the seller’s name. Alberta’s government page lists a separate search by the serial number of a motor vehicle, alongside searches by debtor name. Ontario’s Access Now page says you can use Access Now to find out whether a lien has been filed in Ontario’s personal property security registration system. Check how your own province’s registry handles vehicles. The steps for running a search are in this PPSA search answer.

Owned or leased

Ask for each lease or financing agreement, the lessor’s name and whether the lessor must consent before the lease moves to you. If a unit turns out to be leased, this answer on leased equipment sets out your options.

Registration and operator registrations

Ask how registration transfer works where each vehicle is registered. For Ontario, see transferring vehicles and their insurance in Ontario; elsewhere, ask the issuing office. Ontario also runs the Commercial Vehicle Operator’s Registration (CVOR) program, and describes the operator as the person or corporation responsible for operating the commercial motor vehicle, the driver and the goods or passengers. If the trucks run under an operator registration, ask the Ministry of Transportation what it requires from the entity that will operate them after closing.