§ 8902. Definitions

Unless otherwise expressly provided, as used in this chapter:

(1) “Commissioner” means the Commissioner of Motor Vehicles.

(2) “Resident” shall include all legal residents of this State and in addition thereto any person who accepts employment or engages in a trade, profession, or occupation in this State for a period of at least six months. Also, in addition thereto, any foreign partnership, firm, association, or corporation doing business in this State shall be deemed to be a resident as to all vehicles owned or leased and ordinarily used by it in connection with its place of business in this State. “Resident” shall not include any person, firm, or corporation not required to register motor vehicles by reason of any reciprocity provision with any other state.

(3) “Purchase or purchasing, sale or selling” means any transfer of title or possession, exchange, or barter, conditional or otherwise, in any manner or by any means whatsoever, of a motor vehicle for a consideration, including leases and transactions whereby the possession of the property is transferred but the seller retains the title as security for the payment of the purchase price.

(4) “Purchase price” means the gross consideration, exclusive of the tax hereby imposed, that is to be paid for the motor vehicle, expressed in terms of U.S. currency as of the time of the sale, and shall include the cash consideration, if any, plus the value of any services or property given or to be given, or both, in exchange for the motor vehicle. In the case of a lease, the purchase price shall mean an amount computed by subtracting the lease end value of the motor vehicle from the original acquisition cost of the motor vehicle. For purposes of this subdivision, the original acquisition cost of a motor vehicle is the gross consideration that the lessee would pay for the motor vehicle if the lessee purchased the motor vehicle on the date of execution of the lease contract, as stated in the lease contract or worksheet, and the lease end value is the value of the motor vehicle at the end of the lease period, as stated in the lease contract or worksheet or as determined under section 8907 of this title.

(5) “Taxable cost” means the purchase price as defined in subdivision (4) of this section or the taxable cost as determined under section 8907 of this title. For any purchaser who has paid tax on the purchase or use of a motor vehicle that was sold or traded by the purchaser or for which the purchaser received payment under a contract of insurance, the taxable cost of the replacement motor vehicle other than a leased vehicle shall exclude:

(A) The value allowed by the seller on any motor vehicle accepted by the seller as part of the consideration of the motor vehicle, provided the motor vehicle accepted by the seller is owned and previously or currently registered or titled by the purchaser, with no change of ownership since registration or titling, except for motor vehicles for which registration is not required under the provisions of Title 23 or motor vehicles received under the provisions of subdivision 8911(8) of this title.

(B) The amount received from the sale of a motor vehicle last registered or titled in the seller’s name, the amount not to exceed the clean trade-in value of the same make, type, model, and year of manufacture as designated by the manufacturer and as shown in the NADA Official Used Car Guide (New England edition), or any comparable publication, provided such sale occurs within three months after the taxable purchase. However, this three-month period shall be extended day-for-day for any time that a member of a guard unit or of the U.S. Armed Forces, as defined in 38 U.S.C. § 101(10), spends outside Vermont due to activation or deployment and an additional 60 days following the individual’s return from activation or deployment. Such amount shall be reported on forms supplied by the Commissioner of Motor Vehicles.

(C) The amount actually paid to the purchaser within three months prior to the taxable purchase by any insurer under a contract of collision, comprehensive, or similar insurance with respect to a motor vehicle owned by him or her, provided that the vehicle is not subject to the tax imposed by subsection 8903(d) of this title and provided that one of these events occur:

(i) the motor vehicle with respect to which such payment is made by the insurer is accepted by the seller as a trade-in on the purchased motor vehicle before the repair of the damage giving rise to insurer’s payment; or

(ii) the motor vehicle with respect to which such payment is made to the insurer is treated as a total loss and is sold for dismantling.

(D) A purchaser shall be entitled to a partial or complete refund of taxes paid under subsection 8903(a) or (b) of this title if an insurer makes a payment to him or her under contract of collision, comprehensive, or similar insurance after he or she has paid the tax imposed by this chapter, if such payment by the insurer is either:

(i) on account of damages to a motor vehicle that was accepted by seller as a trade-in on the purchased vehicle before repairs of the damage giving rise to the insurer’s payment; or

(ii) on account of damages for the total destruction of a vehicle arising from an accident that occurred within three months prior to the taxable purchase.

(E) The purchase price of a motor vehicle subject to the tax imposed by subsections 8903(a) and (b) of this title shall not be reduced by the value received or allowed in connection with the transfer of a vehicle that was registered for use as a short-term rental vehicle.

(F) [Repealed.]

(6) “Motor vehicle” shall have the same definition as in 23 V.S.A. § 4.

(7) “Person” means any individual, firm, partnership, joint venture, association, social club, fraternal organization, estate, trust, fiduciary, receiver, trustee, or corporation.

(8) “Title” shall include possession under a sale or purchase that reserves title as security to the seller.

(9) “Rental of pleasure cars on a short-term basis,” or words of similar import, means rentals of pleasure cars for a rental period of less than one year. It shall also mean rentals of trailer coaches and trucks having a gross vehicle weight of 26,000 pounds or less, and of trailers and semi-trailers having a gross weight of 3,000 pounds or less, for a rental period of less than one year. It shall not apply to school buses.

(10) “Rental company” means any person offering pleasure cars for rent on a short-term basis.

(11) “Motor home” means a new or used pleasure car designed to provide temporary living quarters, built into as an integral part of, or permanently attached to, a self-propelled motor vehicle chassis or van. The vehicle must contain at least four of the following facilities: cooking, refrigeration or ice box, self-contained toilet, heating and/or air conditioning, a portable water supply system including a sink and faucet, separate 110-125 volt electrical power supply, and/or an LP gas supply. (Added 1959, No. 327 (Adj. Sess.), § 2, eff. March 1, 1960; amended 1963, No. 229; 1966, No. 66 (Sp. Sess.), § 1; 1967, No. 116 § 1, eff. April 17, 1967; 1969, No. 263 (Adj. Sess.), § 1, eff. April 6, 1970; 1981, No. 87, § 22; 1983, No. 251 (Adj. Sess.), §§ 1, 9 eff. Jan. 1, 1985; 1985, No. 187 (Adj. Sess.), § 1; 1985, No. 218 (Adj. Sess.), §§ 1, 2, eff. June 2, 1986; 1991, No. 67, § 26b; 1995, No. 19, § 1, eff. April 17, 1995; 1995, No. 80 (Adj. Sess.), §§ 1, 3, eff. Feb. 28, 1996; 1999, No. 110 (Adj. Sess.), § 9; 2011, No. 46, § 16, eff. May 24, 2011; 2017, No. 71, § 21; 2021, No. 105 (Adj. Sess.), § 573, eff. July 1, 2022; 2023, No. 41, § 38, eff. July 1, 2023.)