Title 27, Transportation

(1) Every motor vehicle, trailer, semitrailer, and pole trailer when driven or moved upon a highway and every mobile home shall be subject to the provisions of this chapter except:(1) Any vehicle driven or moved upon a highway in conformance with the provisions of this chapter re…

(a) Any motor vehicle or motorcycle belonging to any person who is a nonresident of this state who has registered the motor vehicle or motorcycle in and who has complied with all the laws of the state, territory, District of Columbia, or any province or territory of Canada in whi…

(a) (1) Every owner of a vehicle subject to the registration under this chapter shall make application to the Office of Motor Vehicle for the registration of the vehicle and issuance of a certificate of title or a certificate of title with beneficiary under § 27-14-727 for the ve…

(a) (1) In the event the vehicle to be registered is a specially constructed vehicle, reconstructed vehicle, or foreign vehicle, that fact shall be stated in the application.(2) With reference to every foreign vehicle which has been registered previously outside of this state, th…

The Office of Motor Vehicle, at its discretion, may grant a temporary permit to operate a vehicle for which application for registration and certificate of title has been made where the application is accompanied by the proper fee, pending action upon the application by the Offic…

Notwithstanding any provision of law to the contrary, any motor vehicle for which the annual registration and licensing fee is one hundred dollars ($100) or more, for any twelve-month licensing period, may be licensed for the first six (6) months of the annual licensing period, u…

(1) The Office of Motor Vehicle shall refuse registration or issuance of a certificate of title or any transfer of registration upon any of the following grounds:(1) That the application contains any false or fraudulent statement or that the applicant has failed to furnish requir…

The Office of Motor Vehicle, upon receiving application for original registration of a vehicle or any certificate of title, shall first check the engine and serial number, or other identifying number, shown in the application against the indexes of registered motor vehicles and a…

(1) The Office of Motor Vehicle shall file each application received and, when satisfied as to the genuineness and regularity thereof and that the applicant is entitled to register the vehicle and to the issuance of a certificate of title, shall register the vehicle therein descr…

(a) The Office of Motor Vehicle, upon registering a vehicle, shall issue a registration certificate and a certificate of title. The registration certificate and the certificate of title shall be of a type which, as nearly as possible, prevents the document from being altered, cou…

(a) (1) (A) Every owner, upon receipt of a registration certificate, shall write his or her signature thereon, with pen and ink or with an electronic signature in the space provided.(B) The registration certificate shall be:(i) Carried in the vehicle or on the person driving or i…

(a) The Office of Motor Vehicle, upon registering a vehicle, shall issue to the owner one (1) license plate for a motorcycle, trailer, or semitrailer and one (1) or two (2) license plates for every other motor vehicle. (b) Every license plate shall have displayed upon it the regi…

(a) (1) License plates issued for a motor vehicle other than a motorcycle shall be attached thereto, one (1) in the front and the other in the rear.(2) (A) When one (1) plate is issued, it shall be attached to the rear.(B) License plates for trucks of one-ton capacity or larger m…

(a) There shall not be displayed on motor vehicles, trailers, or semitrailers any other motor vehicle license plates or other means of identification of the payment of the proper motor vehicle license fee other than that which has been issued for display and identification purpos…

Application for renewal of a vehicle registration shall be made by the owner, upon proper application and by payment of the registration fee for the vehicle, as provided by law.

Certificates of title need not be renewed annually but shall remain valid until cancelled by the Office of Motor Vehicle for cause or upon a transfer of any interest shown therein.

(a) In the event any registration certificate or license plate is lost, mutilated, or becomes illegible, the owner or legal representative or successor in interest of the owner of the vehicle for which it was issued, as shown by the records of the Office of Motor Vehicle, shall i…

(a) The Office of Motor Vehicle is authorized to assign a distinguishing number to a motor vehicle whenever the serial number on the motor vehicle is destroyed or obliterated and to issue to the owner a special plate bearing the distinguishing number, which shall be affixed to th…

The Office of Motor Vehicle may adopt and enforce such registration rules as are necessary and compatible with the public interest with respect to the change or substitution of one engine in place of another in any motor vehicle.

(a) Within sixty (60) calendar days of becoming a resident, a person who is a resident of this state shall obtain an Arkansas motor vehicle registration and license in order to operate a motor vehicle upon the streets and highways of this state. (b) A nonresident person who has b…

(a) As used in this section, “designee” means a person or entity that:(1) The Division of Arkansas State Police determines is appropriately suited for serving as a designee; and(2) Agrees to perform vehicle identification number verifications under this section on behalf of the D…

(a) As used in this section:(1) “Low pressure tire” means a pneumatic tire six inches (6″) or more in width designed for use on a wheel with a rim diameter of twelve inches (12″) or less and utilizing an operating pressure of ten pounds per square inch (10 p.s.i.) or less as reco…

(a) As used in this section:(1) (A) “Beneficiary” means one (1) individual who is designated to become the owner of a vehicle upon the death of the current owner as indicated on the certificate of title issued under this chapter.(B) “Beneficiary” does not include a business, firm…

(a) The Secretary of the Department of Finance and Administration may choose to implement a system that offers the holder of a vehicle title a paperless, secure digital vehicle title in lieu of a secure paper vehicle title. (b) If implemented, the secure digital vehicle title sys…

No conditional sale contract, conditional lease, chattel mortgage, or other lien or encumbrance or title retention instrument upon a vehicle, of a type subject to registration under the laws of this state other than a lien dependent upon possession, is valid as against the credit…

(a) There shall be deposited with the Office of Motor Vehicle a copy of the instrument creating and evidencing a lien or encumbrance, which instrument is to be executed in the manner required by the laws of this state and accompanied by the certificate of title last issued for th…

Upon receipt of application and documents as provided in this subchapter, the Office of Motor Vehicle shall file them, endorsing thereon the date and hour received at the central office of the Office of Motor Vehicle. When satisfied as to the genuineness and regularity of the app…

The Office of Motor Vehicle shall maintain an appropriate index of all lien, encumbrance, or title retention instruments filed as provided in this subchapter.

(a) The filing and issuance of a new certificate of title as provided in this chapter shall constitute constructive notice of all liens and encumbrances against the vehicle described therein to creditors of the owner, subsequent purchasers, and encumbrancers, except those liens a…

(a) (1) At his or her option, a lienholder may:(A) Record the lien:(i) On the manufacturer's statement of origin;(ii) On an existing certificate of title; or(iii) If the Office of Motor Vehicle determines it is technologically and economically feasible to offer the ability to ele…

(a) The methods provided in this subchapter of giving constructive notice of a lien or encumbrance upon a registered vehicle shall be exclusive except as to liens dependent upon possession and manufactured homes or mobile homes for which the certificate of title has been cancelle…

(a) It shall be a Class C misdemeanor for any person to fail or neglect to enter the transferee's name on a properly endorsed certificate of title, or fail or neglect to properly endorse and deliver a certificate of title to a transferee or owner lawfully entitled thereto. (b) An…

(a) (1) Whenever the owner or lessee of a registered vehicle transfers or assigns his or her title, or interest thereto, the registration of the vehicle shall expire.(2) The owner or lessee shall remove the license plate or plates therefrom.(3) (A) The owner or lessee may have th…

(a) (1) The transferee of a new or used vehicle required by law to be registered shall apply for the registration of the vehicle within sixty (60) days after the date of the release of lien by a prior lienholder, as provided in § 27-14-909, or sixty (60) days after the date of th…

(a) When the transferee of a used vehicle is a dealer who holds it for resale and lawfully operates it under dealers' number plates or does not drive the vehicle or permit it to be driven upon the highways, the dealer shall not be required to obtain a new registration for the veh…

(a) The Secretary of the Department of Finance and Administration may permit lienholders and motor vehicle dealers to make applications for registration and certificates of title and to furnish them to the Office of Motor Vehicle on behalf of the purchaser of a new or used motor …

(a) (1) Whenever the title or interest of an owner in or to a registered vehicle passes to another person by a method other than voluntary transfer, the registration of the vehicle shall expire, and the vehicle shall not be operated upon public streets or highways for more than s…

(a) Any person holding a lien or encumbrance upon a vehicle, other than a lien dependent solely upon possession, may assign his or her title or interest in or to the vehicle to a person other than the owner without the consent of the owner, and without affecting the interest of t…

(a) For purposes of this section, a lien or encumbrance is satisfied when the lienholder receives final payment under § 4-4-215. (b) (1) Upon the satisfaction of any lien or encumbrance on a vehicle for which the certificate of title is in the possession of the lienholder, the li…

(a) The Office of Motor Vehicle, upon receipt of a properly endorsed certificate of title and proper application for registration accompanied by the required fee, and when satisfied as to the genuineness and regularity of the transfer and of the right of the transferee to a certi…

(1) The owner of a motor vehicle who has made a bona fide sale or transfer of his or her title or interest and who has delivered possession of the vehicle to the purchaser or transferee shall not be liable for any damages thereafter resulting from negligent operation of the vehic…

Any owner dismantling or wrecking any registered vehicle shall immediately forward to the Office of Motor Vehicle the certificate of title, registration certificate, and the license plate last issued for the vehicle, if available.

(a) Any owner who sells a motor vehicle to be used as scrap or to be dismantled or destroyed shall assign a certificate of title thereto to the purchaser and shall deliver the certificate, as assigned, to the Office of Motor Vehicle with a notice that the vehicle is to be dismant…

(a) (1) When the owner of any motor vehicle, excepting Class One trucks and passenger automobiles other than buses, registered and licensed in this state, shall sell or transfer the motor vehicle or when the motor vehicle has been destroyed so as to be unfit for repair or further…

(a) When the owner of a vehicle licensed to operate for hire takes the vehicle out of the for-hire service, the Secretary of the Department of Finance and Administration, upon the payment of a transfer charge of two dollars ($2.00), will cause the license for the vehicle to be tr…

(a) Whenever the owner of a motor vehicle registered under this chapter sells or transfers title or interest in and delivers the possession of the motor vehicle to another person, the owner may notify the Office of Motor Vehicle of the sale or transfer. (b) The notice shall provi…