§17A-6C-1. License certificate required; application form; prohibited acts; reassignment of title; and exemption from privilege tax.

(a) A person, partnership or corporation may not engage in, represent or advertise that he she or it is in the business of conducting automobile auctions without first obtaining a license certificate from the office of the commissioner. The commissioner shall provide an application form for applicants seeking a license certificate. The applicant shall provide full information required by the commissioner on the application form. The applicant, if a person, shall verify the information on the form by oath or affirmation. If the applicant is a partnership or corporation, the oath or affirmation shall be made by a partner or an officer of the corporation.

(b) For the purposes of this article, the term "automobile auction" means an auction or other sale where twenty or more used motor vehicles are offered for sale by auction within a license year, but does not include a sale or auction of surplus vehicles by an agency of this state, a municipality of this state or of the federal government or a sale or auction of repossessed vehicles by a financial institution or a sale or auction by a licensed motor vehicle dealer of vehicles owned by said dealer.

(c) The automobile auction may auction or sell vehicles owned by the auction or may auction vehicles which are owned by others,

(d) When the transferee of a vehicle is an automobile auction which holds the same for resale and lawfully operates the same under Class AA plates, such automobile auction shall not be required to obtain a new registration of said vehicle or be required to forward the certificate of title to the division, but upon transfer of title or interest to another person the automobile auction shall execute and acknowledge an assignment and warranty of title upon the certificate of title and deliver the same not later than sixty days from date of sale to the person to whom such transfer is made.

(e) The tax imposed by section four, article three of this chapter does not apply to the titling of vehicles purchased for resale by an automobile auction.

(f) Notwithstanding any other provision of this article, while the vehicle is in the possession and control of an automobile auction business, its employees may not operate or allow another to operate a vehicle with a salvage or a nonrepairable motor vehicle certificate issued pursuant to section ten, article four of this chapter on the roads and highways of this state. In accordance with the temporary plate provisions and the special dealer plate provisions of this article, an automobile auction may operate or allow another person to operate a vehicle on the roads and highways of this state that has a cosmetic total loss salvage certificate issued pursuant to section ten, article four of this chapter.