Interpretation ID: nht75-5.34
DATE: 12/18/75
FROM: AUTHOR UNAVAILABLE; Stephen P. Wood; NHTSA
TO: Helm; Shapiro; Ayers & Aldrich; P.C.
COPYEE: STEPHEN P. WOOD FOR FRANK BERNDT -- NHTSA
TITLE: FMVSR INTERPRETATION
TEXT: This is in response to your letters of November 11 and December 9, 1975, asking two questions relating to the odometer mileage disclosure requirements contained in section 408 of the Motor Vehicle Information and Cost Savings Act (Pub. L. 92-513).
You explain in your letter that New York law requires, at the time a vehicle is sold, the execution of a certificate of sale (MV-50) containing the odometer mileage. This certificate must be signed by the vehicle purchaser unless a separate form is completed (MV-50.1) by which the purchaser waives his right to sign the certificate of sale. If the purchaser waives his right to sign the MV-50 form, it is filed with the State Department of Motor Vehicles and need not be shown to him.
You ask whether the execution and filing of both the MV-50 and MV-50.1 forms (meaning the MV-50 is not seen by the purchaser) would constitute compliance with the Federal odometer requirements. Section 408 of the Cost Savings Act requires that the "transferor of a motor vehicle give the transferee a written statement disclosing the cumulative mileage registered on the odometer. If the transferor knows that the mileage indicated on the odometer is different from the number of miles the vehicle has actually traveled, he must state this fact in writing on the mileage disclosure form. Section 408 directed the Secretary of Transportation to prescribe rules relating to this disclosure process. 49 CFR Part 580, Odometer Disclosure Requirements, was promulgated in compliance with this mandate and requires the following information to appear on the disclosure document in addition to that specifically mentioned in section 408: date of transfer; transferor's name, address, and signature; make, body type, year, model, vehicle identification number, and last plate number of the vehicle; and a statement certifying that the seller is complying with the Motor Vehicle Information and Cost Savings Act of 1972 and is aware that violation of the Act's provisions may subject him to civil liability. Neither the MV-50 nor the MV-50.1 forms contain this required information. In addition, under the New York scheme you describe, no written mileage information is provided to a purchaser when an MV-50.1 form is completed during a sales transaction. Thus, based on the information you have provided, compliance with the New York law alone would not satisfy the Federal odometer disclosure requirements.
You also ask whether a purchaser can waive his rights to receive an odometer disclosure statement. The duty to provide a mileage disclosure statement to the transferee of a motor vehicle at the time of transfer rests with the transferor. Relief from this Federally imposed duty cannot be provided by the individual to whom the duty is owed.
SINCERELY, HELM, SHAPIRO, AYERS & ALDRICH, P.C.
December 9, 1975
Frank Berndt, Esq. Acting Chief Counsel National Highway Traffic Safety Administration Department of Transportation
I am enclosing a copy of my letter to you of November 11, 1975, in the event that you did not receive it. I would very much appreciate a reply to that letter at your earliest possible convenience.
Your assistance is appreciated.
Howard Shapiro
ENC.
HELM, SHAPIRO, AYERS & ALDRICH, P.C.
November 11, 1975
Frank Berndt, Esq. Acting Chief Counsel National Highway Traffic Safety Administration Department of Transportation
At the suggestion of Karen Kreshover, with whom I had the pleasure of speaking today, I am writing for an interpretation of the odometer mileage disclosure statute and regulations (15 U.S.C., @ 1988; 49 CFR Part 580) as it applies to a case now in our office.
The relevant facts of our case are as follows: When the purchaser bought the automobile, the odometer reflected a mileage of about 19,000 miles and the dealer's salesman assured him that such mileage was accurate. The disclosure form required by 49 CFR 580.4 was not furnished to the purchaser. In actuality, the true mileage of the car was about 117,000 miles, a fact which was concealed from the purchaser who believed he was buying a low mileage automobile.
Under New York law, a certificate of sale, the so-called MV-50 form, must be filed with the State's Department of Motor Vehicles upon the sale of an automobile (a copy of that form is enclosed). That form contains a place for indication of the "Present Odometer Reading" and for the signature of the purchaser. However, under New York regulations, the right to sign the MV-50 form may be waived by the purchaser's execution of an MV-50.1 form, a copy of which is also enclosed. In the event of such waiver, the purchaser will not be aware of the true odometer mileage unless it is disclosed to him by the transferor. In our case, the MV-50, which the purchaser never saw, indicated the apparently true mileage of about 117,000 miles.
On the basis of the foregoing facts, I would like to submit the following questions: 1. In my opinion, the execution and filing of the MV-50 and 50.1 forms did not constitute compliance with the Federal law and regulations requiring written disclosure of odometer mileage, and the accuracy thereof, to the purchaser. Is my opinion correct? and
2. It is also my opinion that the aforesaid Federal odometer disclosure requirements cannot be waived by the purchaser -- the transferor must comply with the requirements -- and that the execution and filing of the MV-50 and MV-50.1 forms did not, therefore, constitute a waiver by the purchaser. Is this opinion correct?
Your assistance and courtesy in this matter is appreciated.
Howard Shapiro
ENC.