IAR Recyclers Newspress January / February 2016

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Buying a Scrap Vehicle without a Title in Iowa
Iowa NMVTIS Law
ARA supports state enforceability of NMVTIS and
efforts to amend state laws that make participation in
NMVTIS and an NMVTIS number conditions of licen-
sure for all businesses and individuals who handle
and process salvage and end of life vehicles.
NMVTIS and now the state of Iowa rule that requires
entities to report to NMVTIS the status of salvage
vehicles is one small but useful piece of information
that law enforcement can easily compile to begin
tracking sales to unlicensed salvage buyers. These
buyers are subject to the provision of reporting
to NMVTIS once they surpass the five vehicle
threshold.
Total loss vehicles are assigned salvage titles once
determined to be end-of-life per state definitions.
These vehicles enter the NMVTIS system and the
buyer is identified in the system when the sale takes
place. Rebuilder vehicles are handled the same as
in the past using the salvage theft inspection pro-
cess to clear the hurdles to become roadworthy
once again.
The vehicles destine to become parts cars and ulti-
mately crushed for scrap metal can and should be
designated at the time of acquisition as CRUSHED
in the NMVTIS system. That eliminates having to
report a vehicle as a PARTS car and then later as
CRUSHED. It also kills the VIN in the system and
thus stops the potential for illegal activity using the
VIN of a salvage vehicle processed by a compliant
business. Vehicles in the NMVTIS system that are
left open ended can be scrutinized by enforcement
to determine if they have been purchased by buyers
that have exceeded the hobbyist threshold or be-
come involved in other illegal activity. For these rea-
sons, it is important for licensed automotive re-
cyclers to stay current on the NMVTIS reporting
time frame.
The best way to report is to use a batch upload pro-
cess through a service provider using the salvage
yard’s inventory management system. For exam-
ple, Auto Data Direct or ADD's NMVTIS upload tools
are designed to help users fulfill the reporting re-
quirement quickly and easily.
Two account types are available to suit any size
business or upload volume.
Full Service accounts include individual vehicle en-
try, batch vehicle entry using a spreadsheet and
business-to-business processing which can be ar-
ranged with the customer's IT staff, all for a low per-
report fee. Basic Service accounts include no-cost
individual entry and emailed confirmation re-
ceipts.
The two components of the new Iowa law should
work together to provide a legal means for individu-
als to sell their salvage vehicle without title to a li-
censed Iowa automotive recycler using an affidavit
AND provide data to enforcement officers on those
unlicensed scrappers that make up the black market
businesses that operate without permits, licenses,
and overhead costs of running a compliant business.
Page 19 Recyclers News Press