GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF NORTH CAROLINA

SESSION 1997

S	1 

SENATE BILL 1390*

Short Title:  Branded Title Clarification.	(Public)

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Sponsors: Senators Hoyle, Cochrane, and Plyler.

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Referred to:  Finance.

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May 27, 1998

A BILL TO BE ENTITLED
AN ACT TO CLARIFY THE REQUIREMENTS FOR INSPECTIONS AND ISSUANCE OF BRANDED TITLES FOR CERTAIN MOTOR VEHICLES.
The General Assembly of North Carolina enacts:
Section 1.  G.S. 20-71.3 reads as rewritten:
"§ 20-71.3.  Titles and registration cards to be branded.
(a)	Motor Vehicle certificates of title and registration cards issued pursuant to G.S. 20-57 may be branded. 
As used in this section, "branded" means that the title and registration card shall contain a designation that discloses if the vehicle is classified as any of the following:
(1)	Flood Vehicle.
(2)	Non-U.S.A. Vehicle.
(3)	Reconstructed Vehicle.
(4)	Salvage Motor Vehicle.
(5)	Salvage Rebuilt Vehicle.
(6)	Any other classification authorized by law.
(b)	Any motor vehicle up to five model years old damaged by collision or other occurrence, which requires a disclosure pursuant to G.S. 20-71.4, and which is to be retitled in this State shall be subject to preliminary and final inspections by the Enforcement Section of the Division.  The Division shall not issue a title to a vehicle which has not undergone a preliminary inspection required by this subsection.
A fee of ten dollars ($10.00) shall be collected by the Enforcement Section of the Division before performing any inspection required by this section.
A vehicle that is not required to be inspected because of its age may be retitled upon application by the rebuilder applicant for an unbranded title pursuant to this subsection provided that an affidavit is submitted disclosing all of the following:
(1)	The parts used or replaced.
(2)	The major components replaced.
(3)	The total cost of repairs.
which shall be the basis for the Division's issuance of the appropriate title.
	These inspections serve as antitheft measures and do not certify the safety or roadworthiness of a vehicle. 
(c)	Any motor vehicle which has been branded in another state shall be branded with the nearest applicable brand specified in this section, except that no junk vehicle or vehicle that has been branded junk in another state shall be titled or registered.
	(d)	A motor vehicle titled in another state and damaged by collision or other occurrence may be repaired and an unbranded title issued in North Carolina only if the cost of repairs, including parts and labor, does not exceed seventy-five percent (75%) of its fair market retail value.  
The Division shall maintain these affidavits and make them available for review and copying by persons researching the salvage and repair history of the vehicle.
(e)	Once a branded title has been issued for a motor vehicle, subsequent titles shall continue to reflect the branding until the title for that motor vehicle is either surrendered to the Division or cancelled by the Division.
(f)	The Division shall prepare necessary forms and may adopt rules required to carry out the provisions of this Part.  All title and title application forms shall contain a notice that indicates that the complete repair or salvage history of the vehicle may not be disclosed on the face of the title."
Section 2.  This act is effective when it becomes law.