New California Dealer Plate Law Goes Into Effect Jan. 1

SAN MATEO, CA -- Call it a shortcut for the state. Auto dealerships throughout the state, including the Peninsula and South Bay, are prepping for new rules handed down by the California Legislature that will require vehicles sold by licensed dealers and "lessor retailers" after Jan. 1, 2019, to display temporary paper license plates or permanent license plates issued by the California Department of Motor Vehicles.

Assembly Bill (AB) 516 written by 22nd District legislator Kevin Mullin, (D-San Mateo), mandates this new requirement, which resembles the multi-pronged steps often associated with any type of DMV transaction. The bill was designed by the Peninsula lawmaker "to prohibit a person from displaying on a vehicle or presenting to a peace officer a temporary license plate that was not issued for that specified vehicle," the law reads.

The aim is to have a better tracking system for the licensing of vehicles and make counterfeiting a temporary license plate a felony.

South Bay dealerships have responded to the lessor-known law signed by the California Gov. Jerry Brown in July 2016 in a variety of ways.

"We're aware of it," said Christian Dimas, sales manager of Hopkins Acura Redwood City. Dimas made the new rules sound easy. His staff has already attended training.

At Los Gatos Luxury Cars, sales manager Wout Stockman said he just found out about the rule.

"We're still trying to figure it out," Stockman said. "We're gonna make sure everything's in place."

DMV will no longer print numbered paper report of sale forms for use by dealers. When a dealer reports a sale electronically, the system will generate a numbered report of sale form, according to the DMV. When consumers purchase a vehicle from a dealership, the dealer will be required to generate the report of sale form and attach the temporary identification portion of the report of sale form to the windshield of the vehicle.

If the vehicle does not already display the required number of permanent license plates, the dealer will also be required to print and issue temporary license plates and attach them to the vehicle before leaving the dealership.

Dealers must print temporary license plates on special paper that meets DMV specifications. The paper is available directly from the first-line service providers and Fairfax. Temporary license plates will display the following information: temporary license plate number, report of sale number, Vehicle Identification Number, year, model, make and an expiration date that is 90 days after the date of sale.

Valid temporary license plates will include security features.

Customers who need replacement temporary license plates will return to the dealership where they purchased the vehicle to request replacements or duplicate, temporary license plates.

AB 516 restricts access to the information contained in the dealer reporting system to authorized users of the department’s Vehicle Registration and Occupational Licensing databases.

--Image via Sue Wood, Patch