These are some of the most recent actions that affect a used car dealer in the state of Florida, and in some cases Nationwide.
If you went to beginning Dealer School or completed a continuing education course after 4/30/05 but before May 1, 2006 you must take an 8 hour continuing education course this license year preferably before April 1, 2008. If you are in this group of dealers, you must complete 8 hours of CE before April 30, 2008 and without it you must stop buying and selling at that time. Each independent dealer shall certify that the dealer (owner, partner, officer, or director of the licensee, or a full-time employee of the licensee that holds a responsible management-level position) has completed 8 hours of continuing education prior to filing the license renewal forms with DMV. You can do it by mail or on-line, just click "School" on the left side of this page to sign up or learn more.
Effective August 15, 2007 electronic titles will become a standard way of handling titles for Florida owners and lienholders. This sounds like a big deal but it is not as complicated as you may think. Instead of a lien-holder holding a title from DMV as security for your car he will now just be shown in the computer electronically as the holder of the title instead of actually holding a title in his hands. If you pay off the lien, the lienholder notifies DMV and then DMV will contact you and let you know that they are holding that same electronic title but now it is in your name alone. If you wish, you can let it remain electronic or you can request it to be printed and sent to you as a paper title just like you are used to already. The only paperwork that has changed is the "rainbow form" (HSMV 82994) which has been revised to allow the sale of an electronic title to a dealer. We will focus on this subject in this year's continuing education for dealers. You can learn more by reading the procedures manual, sections TL05, TL11, TL12, TL32, TL33 and TL36.
Issuance of Temporary tags will have to be electronically reported to DMV. The method of reporting will be determined by DMV and explained to you. The instructions will be issued in DMV procedure RS-31 of the DMV Proceedures Manual.
Certain DMV vehicle/sales records must be retained by the dealer in his files for a period of five years.
Effective July 1, 2005 a trade-in vehicle must be reported to DMV on a newly revised form 82040 (rev. 6/05)(Title Transfer with/without Registration) within 30 days of trade-in. After September 1, 2005 all dealers must use this revised form dated 06/05. This is effective NOW. If you are a Cybernetic Computer software support customer, the form file to print the new 82040 is available free and will be mailed immediately. Call if you have questions about your Cybernetic support.
Effective July 1, 2005 if you do Tags and Registration for a customer and he fails to pay you the cost charged by the state (if it was spelled out specifically in an agreement signed by the customer) then you may put a "stop" on his next registration until he pays you what he owes you. Note, if you put a "stop" on someone but you don't have satisfactory written authorization signed by the customer, you may be punished by DMV. Notification must be to DMV in writing on your dealership letterhead and must be signed by an authorized agent of the dealership. Notification must include the vehicle ID number, the license plate number, the name and driver liicense number of the customer, the amount owed and proof that title and registration fees were separated on or from the invoice.
Sales Tax Changes for Jan 2005 affect 6 counties and are available on the Department of Revenue web site. You can easily visit that site by clicking "automotive Sites" on the left side of this page and then clicking "DOR county rates" on the right side of that page.
Renew Finance Licenses before The first day of of the new year (2005). You can now renew on-line. Just go to the "automotive sites" page of this web site. Look under the category "Florida" and click on "Renew Finance License". You can pay on-line.
Costs imposed by a private tag agency (such as in Miami) for their services above the actual cost of tag and title are being watched closely. Costs charged to a dealer by a non-government body such as a tag agency or "runner" may not be shown as a state fee. Those charges are more appropriately shown as a part of Dealer Preparation on the buyer's order. They must appear "above the tax line" so that sales tax can be charged on that amount. Items "below the tax line" are not taxed.
Consignment sales may NOT be done between two dealers says DMV. For motor vehicle dealers, the consignment that is contemplated under the law is from a "non-dealer" titled owner to a dealer, NOT between dealers. RV is even stricter.
Advertised Price of Vehicles must already include any discretionary dealer charges and fees such as "Dealer Get Ready", "dealer Preparation" or "destination Charge". An advertised price could appear in the newspaper, tabloid, television or even just displayed on the windshield of a vehicle. If you show an asking price, you can not exceed it by adding on a discretionary fee. The Florida Attorney General has begun a crusade to crack down on dealers who advertise a specified price for a vehicle and then bump it up with discretionary charges that represent a reimbursement or profit to them. Don't confuse these charges and fees with the normal Taxes, title fees and insurance premiums from a licensed Company.... these fees are not "dealer discretionary" they are imposed by a licensed agency other than the dealer himself. Don't think you can hide behind the argument that "everybody does it". Not everybody gets caught at once, but when they do get caught it is going to cost them approximately $5000 per incident. More if they try to argue and go to court to fight it, and lose.
New or rebuilt Lead Acid Battery Fees and New Tire Fees. Used car dealers seldom put a "new" tire or battery on a used car. If you do, pay the appropriate fee to your supplier when you buy it. Then, just eat the $1 or $1.50 fee yourself... Then, on the customers invoice write the remark "all applicable disposal fees have been paid". Then, you will save a lot of explaining about extra added charges to the customer.
Temporary Tags may normally be issued to the same customer for the same vehicle no more than twice. Now, with good reason and PRIOR PERMISSION from DMV you may be authorized to issue a third temp tag. Do NOT do it, unless you are specifically authorized by DMV to do it on a case by case basis. Temporary tags can be issued to your dealership for the purpose of taking a vehicle "to or from" an off-premise sale site. Be careful, certain insurance companies are looking hard at that extra risk exposure and may possibly use it as an excuse to charge more for insurance.
Sale of Trade-Ins may not be done prior to the full consumation of the purchase of the newly acquired vehicle. If you conduct a spot delivery, do not dispose of the trade-in untill the bank has approved the purchaser and all contracts have been signed.
Vehicle Theft Scams are increasing every day. In one such scam, a person will ask to test drive a vehicle. He brings it back saying he doesn"t want the vehicle. He gives you the key back and then leaves. It turns out that he really gave you a fake key back and kept your key to the car. He then comes back during the night and steals the car with the key he got from you in the Daytime.
Component Theft. Sometimes a customer will ask to test drive a vehicle... he will then drive to a deserted area and throw the spare tire from this vehicle in the bushes. He will then bring the car back to you (minus the spare) and say he does not want the car. He then goes back to that spot where he left your tire and takes it home with him. He could have done that same thing with your radio, dash knobs, or even parts of the engine. You should have an employee accompany the customer on all test drives. And, at the very least you should keep his Driver's License untill the vehicle is returned. If it were me, I would make a copy of the license and keep it just in case I discover that something is missing later.
HSMV 82053 form: Power of Attorney must be notarized. A new version of this form is now available from the tag office.
PIP deductible may not exceed $1,000 as of October 1, 2003.
Any person who presents, creates, or markets a false or fraudulent insurance card with intent to deceive others is guilty of a felony as of October 1, 2003.
The above are my interpretations of recent alerts. Check for yourself to verify the accuracy of my interpretation, because I do not want to be the cause for grief to any of you.