On Monday, Arkansas Automobile Dealers Association (AADA) hosted a webinar with employees from the Office of Motor Vehicles to update dealers on new law that extends the time requirements for vehicle registration from 30-days to 60-days. This change also impacts temporary paper tags which will now be 60-days for vehicle sales. The highlights from the webinar are below, and if you would like to download the PowerPoint presentation click here.
Key highlights of the new law:
- Extends the time requirements for vehicle registration from 30 to 60-days;
- Temporary paper tags will also be extended from 30- to 60-days;
- This change will affect passenger cars, motorhomes, motorcycles and commercial trucks (excludes motorboats);
- Trailer temporary tags will continue to expire in 30-days; and,
- The 60-day rule will affect vehicles purchased on or after 08/01/23. Vehicles purchased before 08/01/23 are required to be registered within 30-days.
Reminder on types and uses of temporary tags:
- 60-day new purchase (cars, commercial trucks, and motorcycles);
- 30-day new purchase (trailers);
- 14-day loaner (use only when customer’s vehicle is being repaired at the dealership shop);
- 72-hour demonstration (prospective buyers to take home, does not include test drives); and,
- 72-hour transport (use on dealer-owned vehicle for the purpose of transporting).
In addition to these changes resulting from the new law, we also discussed changes to the SecureETag System. Dealers will notice a new box they must check when issuing a temporary tag:
This box clarifies and reminds dealers that a temporary tag is not required for a courtesy or test driven vehicle that is going to be returned before the end of the business day. Dealers are also allowed to provide an information sheet to the customer in lieu of assigning a temporary tag to the vehicle for this single day use. As a reminder, if the use of this vehicle is going to extend beyond the same day, dealers continue to have the option to issue a 72-hour demonstration tag or a 14-day loaner tag.
AADA anticipates hosting a follow-up webinar as issues are likely to arise that need addressing.
If you have any questions about this law change please don’t hesitate to call, (501) 372-2596, or email [email protected].