NORTH CAROLINA DIVISION OF MOTOR VEHICLES VEHICLE REGISTRATION SECTION 15TH EDITION Revised October 2018 DRAFT P R E F A C E The Title and License Manual is provided primarily as a reference guide for titling and licensing vehicles in the State of North Carolina. This manual is in hard copy and on the web, which will allow greater convenience and flexibility when retrieving information. Copies of this manual are available from the Division of Motor Vehicles. Licensed North Carolina dealers can obtain a copy at no charge. i DMV MISSION STATEMENT DMV MISSION STATEMENT The DMV Team delivers quality motor vehicle services, promotes highway safety and furnishes timely and accurate information by providing excellent customer service, enforcing motor vehicle laws and maintaining the integrity of official DMV records. VEHICLE REGISTRATION SECTION MISSION STATEMENT To deliver quality titling and licensing services, furnish timely, accurate information, provide excellent customer service and maintain the integrity of official vehicle registration records. ii STATE TITLING AND REGISTRATION SYSTEM OVERVIEW STATE TITLING AND REGISTRATION SYSTEM OVERVIEW STARS represents a comprehensive automation of all vehicle titling and registration business functions; STARS was implemented on December 2, 1996. The most practical information technologies were utilized to develop the system. STARS was developed over a three year period with a development cost of over 8 million dollars. It is one of North Carolina's largest systems and requires a high level of support and maintenance. STARS currently stores information on 12,700,000 vehicles; 12,100,000 active titles; 6,860,000 active registrations; and historical information on 2,900,000 cancelled titles and 25,800,000 previous years’ registrations. Registration and titling services are transacted at over 128 license plate agencies, at DMV headquarters in Raleigh or Charlotte, or by mail. As of March 1998, 250,000 registrations have been renewed by mail. STARS shares customer name and address information with other DMV systems – SADLS (State Automated Drivers License System) and FuelAcs. Other DMV systems under development (Dealer Licensing, International Registration Plan, Liability Insurance, Emission Tracing System) will also share this database. The main functions of STARS: Provide fully automated title and registration services Facilitate branch office services Provide over the counter or third day receipt of title Ensure proper handling of fiscal activities for titling and registration services Support inventory management Provide special dealer transaction processing Validate sticker/registration documentation processing Facilitate correspondence process Automate forms for titling and registration Maximize management of special registration Allow proper validation of VIN’s and addresses Promote effective interface with external systems The major system components of STARS include titling, registration, fiscal, correspondence, inquiry, police network, imaging, inventory, printing, interface processing, headquarters, batch, and other services. Each of these components will be addressed on a summarized level in the following paragraphs. iii STATE TITLING AND REGISTRATION SYSTEM OVERVIEW Titling records the ownership of vehicles and the liens against vehicles and prints the title. A new title is issued when a title is lost or vehicle ownership or lienholder information is changed. Vehicle titles can be issued, duplicated, corrected, cancelled, branded, and junked. Liens can be added or deleted. Unclaimed titles, returned by the Post Office, can be reissued. Homemade trailers, automobiles, and reassembled motorcycles are assigned state-controlled Vehicle Identification Numbers. Titles can be printed immediately at headquarters (instant titles) or in several days through the batch system. Registration controls access to the public roadways by issuing operating authority to vehicles by issuing license plates (with or without stickers) and printing a registration card. Vehicles that are titled or leased, owned by temporary residents, or operated within North Carolina and subsequent states can be registered when proof of compliance with the compulsory insurance laws are provided. Over 90 different plates are issued: the staggered “First in Flight” plate (the most common plate seen on NC roads), truck plates, farm plates, trailer and motorcycle plates, personalized plates, special group plates such as Wildlife Resources, Amran Temple, in-state and out-of-state university plates, and Retired Air Force. Many elected and appointed officials qualify for official plates that show their position. Plates that have limited demand are only stocked at DMV headquarters but can be requested by the other branches. The customer receives a temporary, cardboard tag to use until the requested plate is mailed from Raleigh. A new registration is issued when the vehicle has a new owner, the vehicle has a new lessee, a previous registration has expired, the insurance penalty fee is paid for a revoked registration, and when the customer requests replacement plates. Most registrations expire after 1 year, with a grace period for the customer’s convenience, and can be renewed. NC Combined Vehicle Registration Renewal and Property Tax Notices are mailed as a reminder to renew and pay property tax. Plates and stickers can be replaced because they are damaged, lost, or stolen. They can also be returned to DMV (turned in) at any time. A lost registration card can be reprinted. Plates can be transferred from one vehicle to another, as long as both vehicles are owned by the same customer. An active plate can be exchanged with credit for one of a different plate category. The weight that a vehicle is allowed to carry can be changed. If the customer wants to terminate the insurance and remove it from the road while the plate is active, the plate must be returned to the state (turned in) before canceling the insurance on the vehicle. Registration services can be denied because the liability insurance coverage has lapsed, county taxes are not paid, child support payments are not current, emission stops or for DWI offenses. Stolen vehicles cannot be registered. iv STATE TITLING AND REGISTRATION SYSTEM OVERVIEW Other Services include issuing handicapped placards, either permanent valid for 5 years or temporary valid for up to 6 months. Outstanding fees can be paid. Documents such as tax receipts and insurance forms can be collected and sent to headquarters for processing. Customers can be created if they are not on the database. Names and addresses can be changed. Four types of addresses are collected: residence, mailing, situs (vehicle location), and one-time addresses used for mailing titles or registrations. Transporter and dealer plates are assigned to the customer, not a specific vehicle, and can be used on any vehicle. Certified documents are printed and released to qualified persons. Fiscal calculates fees due for titling and registration services; records payment; maintains cashdrawers for the clerks; provides end of day processing for branch reconciliation and deposits; produces files for imaging and to audit work done by the branches and releasing titles for print; compensates the branches for the services they performed; and maintains accounts receivable for the recording, billing and aging of accounts receivable. Payments can be made by cash, check, money order, draft, and credit or debit card. Overpayments in mail order work are refunded; if an underpayment was made, the service can be refused until correct payment is remitted or a letter sent requesting fees. Dealer folders containing many pieces of titling and registration work can be divided among several clerks and completed over a number of days. Refunds are created manually and systematically generated, then approved and mailed. Bad checks are posted and can restrict services in the future. Correspondence creates and maintains letters to vehicle owners, registrants, and lienholders. These letters can result in the denial of registration or titling services until a specific problem is resolved. Inquiry/Police Network/External Inquiry displays titling, registration, correspondence, and fiscal information. Access to portions of the information is restricted to STARS clerks, specific branches only, or to Headquarters staff. Other government agencies can obtain title and registration information. General inquiry shows current title and registratio n information, addresses, owner and lessee names, prior plate information for the current owner, and title history. Placards, customer plates, correspondence, plate history, fee forecast, and all fiscal information are available to STARS clerks only. Imaging stores and retrieves vehicle title and registration source documents for future reference. Inventory initiates and receives orders and transfers stock between branches. Contained in inventory are plates, sticker forms, receipts and title document forms. Printing – Most STARS documents are printed using overlays onto blank paper to reduce the cost of stocking forms. Bar codes are printed on the registration cards so they can be scanned at the branches. v STATE TITLING AND REGISTRATION SYSTEM OVERVIEW Interfaces – Stolen and stored vehicle stops are set and removed by License and Theft. Liability insurance sets insurance stops after a lapse in coverage. DWI stops are set and cleared by the court system. Child support stops are set and cleared by DHR. Registration