Vessel Identification, Registration & Titling

The Uniform Certificate of Title for Vessels Act (UCOTVA) provides a consistent consumer protection measure for vessel owners across the United States and its territories. Currently, only two-thirds of states have a certificate of title law for boats and other vessels. A certificate of title is an official document issued by a state or municipality that identifies the owner of a vessel. This patchwork of laws across states leads to extensive fraud. For example, title for a vessel can be “washed” by moving the vessel to a jurisdiction that does not have a vessel titling statute or has a statute that does not cover the type of vessel stolen.