West Virginia Code 17A-6C-1 – License certificate required; application form; prohibited acts; reassignment of title; and exemption from privilege tax
(a) A person, partnership or corporation may not engage in, represent or advertise that he she or it is in the business of conducting automobile auctions without first obtaining a license certificate from the office of the commissioner. The commissioner shall provide an application form for applicants seeking a license certificate. The applicant shall provide full information required by the commissioner on the application form. The applicant, if a person, shall verify the information on the form by oath or affirmation. If the applicant is a partnership or corporation, the oath or affirmation shall be made by a partner or an officer of the corporation.
Terms Used In West Virginia Code 17A-6C-1
- Commissioner: means the Commissioner of the Division of Motor Vehicles of this state. See West Virginia Code 17A-1-1
- Corporation: A legal entity owned by the holders of shares of stock that have been issued, and that can own, receive, and transfer property, and carry on business in its own name.
- Division: means the Division of Motor Vehicles of this state acting directly or through its duly authorized officers and agents. See West Virginia Code 17A-1-1
- Motor vehicle: means every vehicle which is self-propelled and every vehicle which is propelled by electric power obtained from overhead trolley wires, but not operated upon rails. See West Virginia Code 17A-1-1
- Oath: A promise to tell the truth.
- oath: shall be deemed to include an affirmation and the word "swear" or "sworn" to be complied with if the person referred to make solemn affirmation. See West Virginia Code 2-2-7
- Partnership: A voluntary contract between two or more persons to pool some or all of their assets into a business, with the agreement that there will be a proportional sharing of profits and losses.
- Person: means every natural person, firm, copartnership, association, or corporation. See West Virginia Code 17A-1-1
- State: when applied to a part of the United States and not restricted by the context, includes the District of Columbia and the several territories, and the words "United States" also include the said district and territories. See West Virginia Code 2-2-10
(b) For the purposes of this article, the term "automobile auction" means an auction or other sale where twenty or more used motor vehicles are offered for sale by auction within a license year, but does not include a sale or auction of surplus vehicles by an agency of this state, a municipality of this state or of the federal government or a sale or auction of repossessed vehicles by a financial institution or a sale or auction by a licensed motor vehicle dealer of vehicles owned by said dealer.
(c) The automobile auction may auction or sell vehicles owned by the auction or may auction vehicles which are owned by others,
(d) When the transferee of a vehicle is an automobile auction which holds the same for resale and lawfully operates the same under Class AA plates, such automobile auction shall not be required to obtain a new registration of said vehicle or be required to forward the certificate of title to the division, but upon transfer of title or interest to another person the automobile auction shall execute and acknowledge an assignment and warranty of title upon the certificate of title and deliver the same not later than sixty days from date of sale to the person to whom such transfer is made.
(e) The tax imposed by section four, article three of this chapter does not apply to the titling of vehicles purchased for resale by an automobile auction.
(f) Notwithstanding any other provision of this article, while the vehicle is in the possession and control of an automobile auction business, its employees may not operate or allow another to operate a vehicle with a salvage or a nonrepairable motor vehicle certificate issued pursuant to section ten, article four of this chapter on the roads and highways of this state. In accordance with the temporary plate provisions and the special dealer plate provisions of this article, an automobile auction may operate or allow another person to operate a vehicle on the roads and highways of this state that has a cosmetic total loss salvage certificate issued pursuant to section ten, article four of this chapter.