Is there a national database for stolen equipment. Ive been shopping for a used skid steer and want to make sure everything is ligit before forking over cash. Some prices seem too low, maybe people just down on their luck.
Machinery trader does have a bit of a listing for stolen equipment. If it were me, I would just take the serial number and have the government agent (or the police) do a search on it. You are able to do it with cars, so I don't see why you cannot do it with heavy equipment...
If you know what dealership the machine was purchased from, you can call them, (you need the serial number) (they usually have a database of stolen equipment, or at least a machine history). If you dont know what dealership it was purchased from just pick a random dealer, sometimes they can still help you, through the manufacturer)
Here is a clip from answers.com about checking for stolen equip. It looks like it's a bit pricey but hey it beats losing the equip because it was stolen to begin with. When I bought my backhoe the bank registerd it with the state to make sure something was on file but I'm not sure how that works. If I were the seller I wouldn't have a prob paying for this check so that I could show all potential buyers maybe you can get them to at least meet halfway on the cost? Who knows. "I have found that the only comprehensive check for stolen equipment is provided by the National Equipment Register (NER) through their service called IRONcheck ( www.ironcheck.com or www.stopequipmenttheft.com ) The service costs $39 per search. NER appears to be a private company, but it seems to have the most comprehensive and up-to-date equipment theft and ownership data in the US."
Your best bet is to find the ser number tag. If it doesn't have one it's no big problem, but it throws up a flag that it could be a hot one. Just make sure you get good documentation from the seller as to what you paid for it. Also get from him or her the name of the last owner, if posible. You can also ask why their selling it so cheap, and get ready for some wild kind of answers.Good luck there are some good deals out there.
Check with your insurance co. Mine will do a background check on the SN to see if it is listed.