Interpretation ID: 17442.wkm

Mr. Gerard Koudijs
Vredestein Tyres Asia
c/o Elang-Desa Sukahati
Citeureup
Bogor 16810
Indonesia

Dear Mr. Koudijs:

Please pardon the delay in responding to your letter faxed to Walter Myers of my staff. You ask three questions which are discussed below.

You state that P. T. Elangperdana Tyre Industry (PTE) will produce tires under the trade name Epco and will apply for a DOT identification. Your first question asks whether that company would be required to apply again for a DOT identification if it produced tires for a private brand that it does not own. The answer is no.

I assume that your mention of a "DOT identification" refers to the manufacturer identification mark (MIM) issued by this agency as required by 49 Code of Federal Regulations (CFR) 574.6. Subsection 574.5 requires each new tire sold in the United States to have a tire identification number (TIN) labeled by the tire manufacturer on one sidewall of the tire. The MIM is the first grouping of the TIN (see subsection 574.5(a)). This TIN is intended to assist the agency in identifying the production source of a tire in the event of a noncompliance or defect. This agency issues a separate MIM for each plant that currently produces tires, but a plant can only have one MIM, whether or not the plant produces other tire brands. Further, the MIM remains in effect as long as the plant to which it applies remains in production. Therefore, once a MIM is assigned to the PTE plant, the plant may not be issued another MIM even if PTE produces tires for a different brand name owner. A different brand name owner, however, would be required to have its own TIN. Finally, the MIM assigned to the PTE plant cannot be reassigned to another plant, even if a second plant replaces the first.

With reference to designation of a resident agent, your second question asks if we could provide you copies of "section 110a and 1399a (west 1982)" that was referred to in some material Mr. Myers sent you in October 1997. Those two sections are the same, and refer to section 110(a) of the National Traffic and Motor Vehicle Safety Act of 1966, which was originally codified in Title 15, U.S. Code, section 1399(a). That provision has been recodified and is now found in Title 49, U.S. Code, section 30164, a copy of which is enclosed.

Your third question asks whether the designated agent could be a lawyer and the commercial affairs of the company handled through a trading company. Title 49, CFR, subsection 551.45 (copy enclosed), provides that a manufacturer offering to import a motor vehicle or motor vehicle equipment into the United States must designate "a permanent resident of the United States" as the importer's agent:

[U]pon whom service of all processes, notices, orders, decisions, and requirements may be made for him and on his behalf as provided in section 110(e) of the National Traffic and Motor Vehicle Safety Act of 1966 (80 Stat. 718) (NOTE: as stated above, this section is now 49 U.S. Code, 30164). The agent may be an individual, a firm, or a domestic corporation. Any number of manufacturers may designate the same person as agent.

We read your question as asking whether PTE can have more than one resident agent, one to receive service of legal process and the other to conduct PTE's commercial business. The agent can be a lawyer (many are), but subsection 551.45 does not require that the agent be a lawyer. As quoted above, the agent can be an individual, firm, or domestic corporation. Thus, a U.S. trading company or any other U.S. firm or corporation can act as the resident agent. Although Part 551.45 does not prohibit designation of more than one agent or the designation of different agents for specific purposes, that is not recommended since it could cause confusion and cause your representatives to miss notifications or response dates. On the other hand, one agent can have many duties, including receiving service of legal process, marketing, distribution, and all other company activities in the United States.

I hope this information is helpful to you. Should you have any further questions of need additional information, feel free to contact Mr. Myers at this address or at (202) 366-2992, fax (202) 366-3820.

Sincerely,
Frank Seales, Jr.
Chief Counsel
Enclosures
Ref:551#574