DMV-DIRECT Newsletter September 2017

Scenario: A customer neglected to inform your dealership’s staff that their vehicle has a pending insurance lapse with DMV. This problem was only discovered after the paperwork was rejected. How can the dealership resolve this issue in full compliance with DMV? REGISTERING A VEHICLE WITH AN INSURANCE LAPSE

Notify DMV If the customer doesn’t sign for the letter, or if it is undeliverable, you may do the following: Send the original paperwork, along with either the proof of mailing or the entire letter, to your registration service. Attach a separate letter, on dealership letterhead, requesting a title-only to be issued, due to the lack of response from the customer. DMV will issue a title, thereby securing the lien. The dealership will have complied with all laws and will no longer be responsible for the registration of the vehicle. (Note that if the customer chooses to surrender their plates rather than pay the insurance penalties, your dealership cannot issue them plates from inventory later on. Only the dealership’s service provider or a DMV office can issue new plates once the suspension is served.)

If registration paperwork is rejected because of an insurance lapse on file for your customer, certain steps will ensure that your dealership can still secure liens on the financed vehicle, while complying with DMV’s 5-day rule: Notify the Customer Upon receiving the rejected paperwork, send a letter to the customer informing them about the insurance lapse and requesting that they: a) pay any fines or penalties owed to DMV so that the lapse can be removed; and, b) provide the dealership with the receipt they get fromDMV. The letter should state that if the customer does not address this in a timely manner, the vehicle will not be fully registered and a title-only will be secured. The customer will be responsible for obtaining full registration for the vehicle. Send the letter certified mail, return receipt requested; this will provide your dealership with proof of mailing, showing that you made every reasonable effort to contact the customer within the required five days for submitting registration and title paperwork to DMV. (It may take 1-2 weeks for your customer to provide your dealership with the clearance receipt from DMV.)

DMV-DIRECT PROCESSES DUPLICATE TITLES IN 3 DAYS DMV-DIRECT offers the fastest turnaround-time in the state for Duplicate Titles, at just three days. The process for requesting rush duplicate titles is quick and simple for both GNYADA members and non-members: • Have the customer sign a Duplicate Title Application (MV-902) • Copy the customer’s driver license • Have the customer sign an Authorization Letter on dealership letterhead authorizing the dealership to receive the duplicate title. All documents can be faxed to DMV-DIRECT at 718.508.4791. If there are no errors or omissions, the office will process rush duplicates that day and dealerships will receive Duplicate Titles within three days of the request. For copies of the necessary forms, call DMV-DIRECT at 718.747.0400.