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§ 46.2-1561 To whom temporary plates shall not be issued; dealer to forward application for current titling and registration; misstatements and false information

No dealer shall issue, assign, transfer, or deliver temporary license plates to other than the bona fide purchaser or owner of a vehicle, whether or not the vehicle is to be registered in the Commonwealth. If the vehicle is to be registered in the Commonwealth, the dealer shall submit to the Department a written application for the current titling and registration of the purchased vehicle, accompanied by the prescribed fees. Any dealer who issues temporary license plates to a purchaser who fails or declines to request that his application be forwarded promptly to the Department forthwith shall notify the Department of the issuance in the manner provided in this article. No dealer shall lend temporary license plates to any person for use on any vehicle. If the dealer does not have in his possession the certificate of title or certificate of origin he may issue temporary license plates even though the purchaser has current license plates to be transferred. The dealer shall present the title or certificate of origin to the customer or transfer vehicle ownership in accordance with § 46.2-603.1 within 30 days of purchase and after this transaction is completed the customer shall transfer his current license plates to the vehicle. If the title or certificate of origin cannot be produced for a vehicle or the dealer fails to transfer vehicle ownership in accordance with § 46.2-603.1 within 30 days, a second set of temporary license plates may be issued provided that a temporary certificate of registration is issued as provided in § 46.2-1542. It shall be unlawful for any person to issue any temporary license plates containing any misstatement of fact, or for any person issuing or using temporary license plates knowingly to insert any false information on their face.

History

This law was first created in 1988. The record of its establishment is cataloged in chapter 865 of that year’s edition of “Acts of Assembly,” the annual state publication listing all changes made to the Code of Virginia in that year. Unfortunately, the 1988 “Acts” aren’t available online. It has been modified 4 times. Those modifications are cataloged by “The Acts of Assembly,” a state publication, by year and chapter. Those modifications that can be read on the General Assembly’s website will be linked accordingly. Those modifications are as follows: in 1989, chapter 727; in 2005, chapter 558; in 2012, chapter 650; in 2015, chapter 615.

1988, c. 865, § 46.1-550.5:19; 1989, c. 727; 2005, c. 558; 2012, c. 650; 2015, c. 615.

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