Roger

Please forgive the details... it is necessary...

My best friend died in a tragic work place accident last August. He had purchased a vehicle two months prior to his passing. Upon his death, his sister informed us we were listed under TOD (Transfer on Death) on the cars title.

We were grateful for his thoughtfulness in listing us, but with the pandemic and losing my paycheck for a while, the extra expense was not needed, but the money from the sale would help our family through this rough time.We were concerned that there might be a lien. But his sister told us she thought he got the money through a 'personal loan' from his bank and this seemed to be confirmed when we saw the title. There was NO lien holder listed. When we took the title to the DMV with his death certificate, we discussed this concern with the lady there. We were told that the title was a valid title and IF there was no lien holder listed, then we were safe to transfer ownership without worry.

WELL, we got the title in our name, and right on the title it lists Commerce Bank (my friend's bank) as the lien holder! We were floored. The people at the DMV are pretty much shrugging their shoulders and acting like there's not a damn thing they could have done about it. And when we called Commerce Bank, they declined to discuss the matter with us! No one will explain what is going on and why a lien holder suddenly appeared on this car!

Can anyone give us some advise?