Volume 8

Legislative UpdateSystem Help Guide

License RenewalOffsite Sales

Outreach

DEALER DESIGNEE &TRANSFER LICENCES

EXPLAINED

An Explainer

If you’ve ever wondered exactly what a dealer designee

plate is, you are not alone. Because this is a license plate

that was issued by BMV for many years before it transferred to our

office in 2017, we assumed that dealers were familiar with it. But we

know new dealers have been added since then, so we wanted to offer a quick rundown:

1. Dealer designee plates are available for assignment by dealers to others. This is different from regular dealer plates which can, for the most part, only be used by the dealer. Designee plates are most commonly assigned by dealers to schools, but can also be assigned to individuals.

DEALER DESIGNEE 2. Dealer designee plates look like this:

If it doesn’t look like the picture above, it’s not a designee plate.

3. Dealer designee plates are subject to the following rules:

•Dealer designee plates can only be used on vehicles in your inventory. A designee plate cannot be assigned for use on a vehicle owned by a business or individual.

•A dealer cannot receive more than 10 dealer designee plates.

•A dealer designee plate cannot be assigned to a designee for more than 180 days unless an extension is requested (in writing) and granted by our office.

•The designee must carry a copy of the assignment form (State Form 56287) in the vehicle at all times.

•Insurance for the vehicle must be in place.

4. If you want to apply for dealer designee plates, please submit State Form 56304. Dealer designee plates can only be issued to new dealers, used dealers, watercraft dealers, and manufacturers. Other license types are ineligible.

PLATES

TRANSFER DEALER LICENSE USED DEALER

• Selling cars is a business you choose to engage in, even if it’s not your main business.

o Ex: You run a body shop and sell cars when business is slow.If this describes your business and you currently hold a transfer dealer license, please reach out to the examiner for your area and they can help you make the transition to a used dealer license.

We are in the process of trying to get everyone sorted into the right license type, so don’t be surprised if we reach out to you about this. Please take a look at the above information and see if a change to your license type is needed. If you need to make a change, please email your examiner or let us know at dealers@sos.in.gov and we will get you on your way!

– An Explainer

Our office has noticed a lot of confusion about this license type, so we put together a primer on our most frequently asked questions:

_____________________

__________________________

Region Name EmailNortheast Kathleen Hults khults@sos.in.gov

Northeast Rebecca Kimmerling rkimmerling@sos.in.gov Northwest Christie Games CGames@sos.in.gov

Northwest Sherri Van Hook svanhook@sos.in.gov Central Trey Jefferson Ajefferson2@sos.in.gov Central Rhonda Miller rhmiller@sos.in.gov Southeast Carol Poe capoe@sos.in.gov Southwest Casey Meek Cmeek1@sos.in.gov

_______________

TRANSFER DEALER

• Transfer = title transfer, not physical transfer of vehicle

• Selling cars is not something you want or elect to do as a business – it’s something you have a need to do 12 or more times per year as part of your primary business

o Ex: sell a car you repossessedo This does not include people who engage in car sales as a side business. If you are choosing to be in the car sale business, you are a used dealer.

• You are a bank or insurance companyIf this describes your business, you are properly licensed as a transfer dealer! You don’t have to be a bank or insurance company to qualify – they are just the businesses most likely to need this license type.

TRANSPORT OPERATOR

• You don’t engage in car sales• You only use dealer plates to move cars from place to placeIf this describes your business, you don’t need a dealer license. All you need are transport operator plates from the BMV. Once you have received your transport plates, please follow the “ceasing business” steps outlined here and return your dealer plates to our office.

Legislative UpdateOur bill this year was composed mostly of technical changes and clean-up, but there were a few items of which dealers should be aware:

If you are required to register with Department of Financial Institutions, you must be in compliance with the DFI at all times that your dealer license is valid.

A lien payoff must be made within 10 days of the date a vehicle is delivered to (trade-in) or sold by a dealer.

• This is how the Division has been interpreting the current statutory language. The new language is just an effort to spell that out more clearly.

The language on the title delivery affidavit has been updated. • Please review the form(s) you use to ensure the

necessary changes are made.

Every deal jacket must contain the following. If a document is not applicable to the sale, it is not required:

• Finance agreement • Sales receipt from auction• Title affidavit required by IC 9-32-4-1• Interim plates generated in error• Copy of rebuilt vehicle disclosure required by 17 IC 9-32-

13-6

Our examiners have always looked for these documents during audits. We decided to spell them out in statute in an effort to be more transparent and to offer dealers additional guidance.

Completing an online transaction

Our website has a help guide for each one of these:

• Renew a license• Apply for a license• Report a plate as lost, stolen, or mutilated• Request a replacement plate• Request a dealer or interim plate limit increase• Request additional dealer plates within your current limit

If you still have questions after looking at the help guide, our Dealer Account Helpline is available at 317-576-2568 and can walk you through any of these.

System Help GuideSubmitting bond or insurance If you see “Bond Update” or “Insurance Update” in the Recent Transactions box of your dealer dashboard, your documents have been received and are being processed.

It may take 3-5 business days after the document was submitted for the transaction to appear on your dashboard.

Please do not submit documentation more than once unless requested to do so by our office.

Documents being submitted in response to a suspension should be submitted to legal@sos.in.gov for prompt assistance.

Requesting an update on a transaction or requestThe “Recent Transactions” widget on your dealer dashboard provides real time updates.

• It may take 3-5 business days for a document or request submitted by mail, email, or fax to appear on your dashboard.

• Transactions or requests submitted online should appear within approximately 30 minutes.

Help with your dealer online account Our Dealer Account Helpline is available at 317-576-2568.

• They can assist with creating your account and completing all available online transactions.

Most questions can be answered by reviewing our help page.

License RenewalPAYING FOR PLATES

• We no longer accept upfront payment for dealer plates• We will invoice you once your renewal has been

processed. • You can pay your plate invoice onlineWe have anywhere from 200-900 renewal packets to process each month. So please be patient if you are calling or emailing our office during the last week of a month. During that week our priority is getting renewals processed, so it takes us a bit longer to carve out time for responding to voicemails and emails.

We know license renewal can be an anxious time. Here are some pro tips:

SUBMIT EARLY• You can submit your license renewal up to 90 days in

advance of your license expiration date. • The sooner you submit it, the less you need to sweat it!

CHECK THE FINE PRINT• Make sure the expiration dates on your bond and

insurance fall after your license expiration dates. • You must submit a current copy of both your bond and

insurance certificate with each renewal application.• The insurance certificate holder must be the Indiana

Secretary of State. We will not accept certificates that list the BMV as a certificate holder.

YOUR DASHBOARD IS YOUR BEST FRIEND• You can check the progress of your renewal online –

even if you submitted it via fax, email, or mail. • It may take up to 7 business days for the license renewal

to show up on your dealer dashboard if you submitted it via fax, email, or mail. Please wait at least this long before asking for a status update or re-submitting your renewal.

• Please check your dashboard before calling or emailing our office to confirm receipt or check for a status update. The answer is probably there!

As you plan your summer sales events, keep the following in mind:

• You need an offsite sales permit to sell vehicles away from your established place of business.

• You need to apply for an offsite sale at least two (2) weeks before the sale is set to take place.

• Your offsite sale can’t take place more than a 20 mile radius (straight line) away from your established place of business.

• The offsite sale can’t last more than 10 days.• You can only hold three (3) offsite sales each calendar year.• If you see a dealer conducting what you believe to be an

unauthorized offsite sale, you can file a complaint with our office. Your complaint can be anonymous if you prefer.

Offsite Sales

Twitter: @SecretaryLawson

Facebook: @sosconnielawson

Instagram: secretary_lawson

Indiana Secretary of State

Auto Dealer Services Division

302 W. Washington St.

Room E-111

Indianapolis, IN 46204

(317)234-7190

dealers@sos.in.gov

Contact us!

Find us on Social Media

Outreach Auto Dealer Services Division

The Auto Dealer Services Division offers an array of outreach opportunities to dealers. Whether you are a new dealer coming into the business and would like your staff to be introduced to the state regulations or an established dealer that would like to offer your employees a brush up on current state codes, our division can help.

We can go over topics like what to expect in an audit, what should be in your deal jackets, or what all can you do on your website. If you have specific topics, we can direct the training to fit your group.

To get information on training, contact:

Rhonda Miller - Outreach Coordinator and Field Examiner317-460-6433; rhmiller@sos.in.gov