Selling a Vehicle? Know the new DMV law.
Personal Lines
As of January 1, 2016, a new DMV law (342.41 Identity of buyer) went into effect requiring a person who sells a motor vehicle to another person, including transferring a junk vehicle by bill of sale, to submit notification to the department that a sale has occurred. This law does not apply for transfer to or from dealers or other non-individuals, such as companies, charities and government agencies; this requirement is ONLY for sales from one individual to another individual.
Within 30 days of a sale the seller needs to report to WisDOT:
- Vehicle identification number (VIN) of the vehicle
- Identity of the individual buyer
- Sale price
- Date of sale
To submit seller notification online you need:
- To be an owner of the vehicle (must be an individual, not a business)
- Your Wisconsin driver license or identification card number (or full name)
- The last four digits of your social security number (or full SSN)
- Your date of birth
- The vehicle identification number (VIN) for the vehicle
Related information and to start the form online:
http://wisconsindot.gov/Pages/online-srvcs/other-servs/seller-notify.aspx
Instructions on what to do when you privately sell your vehicle:
http://wisconsindot.gov/Pages/dmv/vehicles/sll-jnk-vhcl/sellyourvehicle.aspx
