§ 415-A Vehicle dismantlers and other persons engaged in the transfer or disposal of junk and salvage vehicles
VTL § 415-A
§ 415-a. Vehicle dismantlers and other persons engaged in the transfer or disposal of junk and salvage vehicles.
1.Definition and registration of vehicle dismantlers. A vehicle dismantler is any person who is engaged in the business of acquiring motor vehicles or trailers for the purpose of dismantling the same for parts or reselling such vehicles as scrap. No person shall engage in the business of or operate as a vehicle dismantler unless there shall have been issued to him a registration in accordance with the provisions of this section. A violation of this subdivision shall be a class E felony.
1-a. Definition and registration of salvage pools. A salvage pool is any person, acting on behalf of the vehicle owner or an insurance company, who sells, offers for sale or solicits bids for the sale of junk or salvage vehicles or major component parts of such vehicles, or displays or permits the display of such vehicles or parts upon premises owned or controlled by him, but who does not dismantle vehicles. No person shall engage in business as a salvage pool unless there shall have been issued to him a registration in accordance with the provisions of this section. A violation of this subdivision shall be a class A misdemeanor.
1-b. Definition and registration of mobile car crushers. A mobile car crusher is any person who engages in the business of operating a transportable car crusher, but who does not acquire ownership of the vehicles which he crushes. No person shall engage in the business of or operate as a mobile car crusher unless there shall have been issued to him a registration in accordance with the provisions of this section. A violation of this subdivision shall be a class A misdemeanor.
1-c. Itinerant vehicle collectors. An itinerant vehicle collector is any person who is engaged in the business of acquiring non-operable vehicles and who sells such vehicles or major component parts thereof to a vehicle dismantler or scrap processor. No person shall engage in business as an itinerant vehicle collector unless there shall have been issued to him a registration in accordance with the provisions of this section. A violation of this subdivision shall be a class A misdemeanor.
2.Application for registration. An application for registration as a vehicle dismantler, salvage pool, mobile car crusher or itinerant vehicle collector shall be made to the commissioner on a form prescribed by him which shall contain the name and address of the applicant and the names and addresses of all persons having a financial interest in the business. Such application shall contain a listing of all felony convictions and all other convictions relating to the illegal sale or possession of a motor vehicle or motor vehicle parts, and a listing of all arrests for any such violations by the applicant and any other person required to be named in such application. On and after January first, nineteen hundred ninety-two, such application for or renewal of registration as a vehicle dismantler shall, in addition to the foregoing, contain a statement indicating that the applicant has purchased approved motor vehicle refrigerant recycling equipment or refrigerant recapturing equipment in accordance with section 38-0107 of the environmental conservation law. Applicants who are vehicle dismantlers must submit along with their application either a manufacturer's certificate issued upon purchase or an invoice with proof of payment. All such documents shall contain the name and address of the repair shop and manufacturer, the date purchased, and the serial numbers of the units acquired. The application shall also contain the business address of the applicant and may contain any other information required by the commissioner.
3.Fees. The annual fee for registration as a vehicle dismantler, salvage pool, mobile car crusher or itinerant vehicle collector shall be fifty dollars. Upon approval of an application, an appropriate registration shall be issued for a period of time determined by the commissioner and if issued for a period of more or less than one year, the fee shall be prorated on a monthly basis. Fees assessed under this section shall be paid to the commissioner for deposit to the general fund.
4.Requirements for registration.
(a)Except as otherwise provided herein, no registration shall be issued or renewed unless the applicant has a permanent place of business at which the activity requiring registration is performed which conforms to section one hundred thirty-six of the general municipal law as such section applies and to all local laws or ordinances and the applicant and all persons having a financial interest in the business have been determined by the commissioner to be fit persons to engage in such business. However, the commissioner may issue a temporary registration pending final investigation of an application.
(b)The provisions of this subdivision requiring a place of business at which the activity requiring registration is performed shall not apply to a mobile car crusher nor to an itinerant vehicle collector. However, the mobile car crusher or itinerant vehicle collector must otherwise comply with all applicable local licensing laws or ordinances.
(c)Notwithstanding the provisions of paragraph (a) of this subdivision, the commissioner may issue a registration to an applicant for registration as a vehicle dismantler or salvage pool to a person who may not comply with local laws relating to zoning provided that the applicant has engaged in business at that location as a vehicle dismantler since September first, nineteen hundred seventy-three. However, the issuance of such registration shall not be a defense with respect to any action brought with respect to violation of any such local law.
5.Records and identification.
5-a. Improper display of signs.
6.Suspension, revocation and refusal to renew a registration; civil penalty.
7.Registration as a dealer and as a vehicle dismantler or salvage pool. A person may be registered as a dealer under section four hundred fifteen of this chapter as well as a vehicle dismantler or a salvage pool under this section. However, any such person must obtain a separate registration for each activity and must maintain separate records for each activity.
8.Vehicle rebuilders.
9.Scrap processor.
10.Scrap collectors and repair shops.
11.Out-of-state businesses. A person doing business in this state who does not have a place of business in this state, but has a place of business or engages in such business in another state or province of Canada and who would be required to be registered or certified pursuant to this section if it were in this state, shall apply to the commissioner for an identification number in a manner prescribed by the commissioner. Such identification number shall be issued provided that such person complies with all the laws and regulations of the jurisdiction in which he has his principal place of business or engages in such business applicable to such business.
12.Identification of certified persons.
13.Suspension or revocation of identification number or certification. An identification number and/or certification issued pursuant to subdivision eight, nine, ten or eleven of this section may be suspended or revoked upon conviction of any provision of the penal law relating to motor vehicle theft, illegal possession of a stolen vehicle or illegal possession of stolen motor vehicle parts. The commissioner may also revoke or suspend registration or certification, after an appropriate hearing where the holder of the registration or certification has had an opportunity to be heard, upon a finding of: (a) that there has been a change to the holder's status which would have resulted in a refusal to issue in the first instance, or (b) that the issuance was based upon a false statement by the holder, or (c) that there was a violation of the record keeping requirements, or (d) that there was a violation of the regulations promulgated by the commissioner pursuant to this section, or (e) that there was a violation of title X of this chapter.
14.Restrictions on scrap processors. A certified scrap processor shall not purchase any material which may have been a vehicle or a major component part of a vehicle, if recognizable as such, from any person other than a dealer registered pursuant to section four hundred fifteen of this chapter, an insurance company, a governmental agency, a person in whose name a certificate of title or other ownership document has been issued for such vehicle or a person registered or certified or issued an identification number pursuant to this section. A violation of this subdivision shall be a class A misdemeanor.
15.Regulations. The commissioner shall prescribe such rules and regulations as he shall deem necessary to carry out the provisions of this section.
