Title 50, Motor and Non-Motor Vehicles and Traffic.

Whenever it is desired to enter a lien or an assignment upon a certificate and such certificate is not available, upon delivery to the Recorder of the instrument or assignment the Recorder shall demand that the person possessing the certificate surrender it for the purpose of ent…

The record holder of the 1st unsatisfied lien shown upon the certificate shall be entitled to the possession of the certificate and upon satisfaction of his lien he shall, within 72 hours, place upon the face of the certificate the Recorder’s record number of the lien, or, if no …

The Recorder, upon receipt of a certificate whereon a lien is marked “Satisfied” as set forth in § 50-1210, shall enter on the face of the certificate and on the instrument, if any, filed in the Recorder’s office as hereinafter provided, his said record number, or, if no such ins…

The fee for recording liens or assignments of liens upon a certificate shall be the sum of $20 for each lien or assignment of lien on each motor vehicle or trailer contained in the instrument, which fee shall include the charge for recording the release of such lien. The District…

Notwithstanding the provisions of § 50-1212, there shall be a $15 fee for recording the release of a lien which is recorded under the provisions of this chapter, prior to June 19, 1948, and no assignment of which is recorded under the provisions of this chapter after June 19, 194…

Any person intentionally making a false statement with respect to liens in an application for a certificate, or wilfully violating any of the provisions of this chapter, shall upon conviction be punished by a fine of not more than the amount set forth in § 22-3571.01 or be impris…

Appropriation is hereby authorized to be made to carry out the provisions of this chapter, and the Mayor of the District of Columbia is authorized to include in his annual estimates provision for all the expenses of the Office of the Director incident to such purposes, and for pe…

In the case of motor vehicles or trailers, notwithstanding any other provisions of law, a transaction does not create a sale or security interest merely because it provides that the rental price is permitted or required to be adjusted under the agreement either upward or downward…

(a) Notwithstanding any other provision in this chapter, the Director may receive and transmit liens and lien information electronically, record liens electronically, and create and transfer titles electronically, in accordance with the following provisions: (1) Any lien informat…

This chapter may be cited as the “Motor Vehicle Safety Responsibility Act of the District of Columbia.”

The following words and phrases used in this chapter shall, for the purpose of this chapter, have the meanings respectively ascribed to them in this article except in those instances where the context clearly indicates a different meaning: (1) “Mayor” means the Mayor of the Distr…

(a) The Mayor shall administer and enforce the provisions of this chapter. The Mayor may issue rules necessary to implement the provisions of this chapter, including, but not limited to, the amendment and revision of Chapter 8 of 18 DCMR. The fee for the reinstatement of a licens…

(a) Any order or act of any agent of the Mayor under the provisions of this chapter shall be subject to review by the Mayor. Application for review of any such order or act shall be in writing and shall set out in detail the reasons for such review. Such application shall be file…

(a)(1) The Mayor shall, upon request, furnish any person a certified abstract of the District of Columbia operating record of any person subject to the provisions of this chapter, which abstract shall include enumeration of any motor vehicle accidents in which such person has bee…

(a) A certified copy of any record of the Department of Motor Vehicles shall be deemed authentic without further testimony as evidence in any judicial proceeding or administrative hearing. (b) The Director may satisfy a Superior Court subpoena directed to the production of docume…

The Mayor shall furnish to any person who may be injured in person or property by any motor vehicle, upon written request, a statement that the owner or operator of any motor vehicle has furnished evidence of his ability to respond in damages in accordance with the provisions of …

(a) The operation by a nonresident or by his agent of a motor vehicle on any public highway of the District of Columbia shall be deemed equivalent to an appointment by such nonresident of the Mayor or his successor in office to be his true and lawful attorney upon whom may be ser…

(a) Service of process may be made pursuant to the rules of the Superior Court on a defendant who is a resident and who was the owner or operator of a motor vehicle at the time such vehicle was involved in a collision on any public highway of the District. (b) When proof is made …

Whenever any motor vehicle, after the passage of this chapter, shall be operated upon the public highways of the District of Columbia by any person other than the owner, with the consent of the owner, express or implied, the operator thereof shall in case of accident, be deemed t…

The provisions of this chapter requiring the deposit of proof of financial responsibility, subject to certain exemptions, shall apply with respect to persons who have been convicted of or forfeited bail for certain offenses under motor vehicle laws or who have failed to pay judgm…

(a) For the purposes of [this subchapter], the term: (1) "DMV" means the Department of Motor Vehicles established by § 50-901(a). (2) "Judgment" means any judgment which shall have become final by expiration without appeal of the time within which an appeal might have been perfec…

(a) The DMV shall suspend, in accordance with the requirements of § 50-1301.38, the license and registration of any person who was convicted or adjudicated a juvenile delinquent by a final order or judgment for, or who forfeited any bond or collateral given to secure their appear…

(a) For a person whose license and registration was suspended pursuant to § 50-1301.37, the person's license and registration shall remain suspended, and the person shall be ineligible for a new or renewed license or registration, until the person: (1) Completes a 6-month period …

Whenever any person fails within 30 days to satisfy any judgment, then upon the written request of the judgment creditor or his attorney it shall be the duty of the clerk of the court in which any such judgment is rendered within the District of Columbia to forward to the Mayor i…

If the defendant named in any certified copy of a judgment reported to the Mayor is a nonresident, the Mayor shall transmit a certified copy of the judgment to the official in charge of the issuance of licenses and registrations of the state of which the defendant is a resident.

(a) Judgments herein referred to shall, for the purpose of this chapter only, be deemed satisfied: (1) When $10,000 has been credited upon any judgment or judgments rendered in excess of that amount because of bodily injury to or death of 1 person as the result of any one acciden…

(a) A judgment debtor upon due notice to the judgment creditor may apply to the court in which such judgment was rendered for the privilege of paying such judgment in installments and the court, in its discretion and without prejudice to any other legal remedies which the judgmen…

No vehicle shall be or continue to be registered in the name of any person required to file proof of financial responsibility unless such proof shall be furnished for such vehicle.

Proof of financial responsibility when required under this chapter, with respect to such a vehicle or with respect to a person who is not the owner of such a vehicle may be given by filing: (1) A certificate of insurance, as provided in § 50-1301.54 or 50-1301.55; or (2) A certif…

Proof of financial responsibility for the future may be furnished by filing with the Mayor the written certificate of any insurance carrier duly authorized to do business in the District of Columbia certifying that there is in effect a motor vehicle liability policy for the benef…

A nonresident may give proof of financial responsibility by filing with the Mayor a written certificate or certificates of an insurance carrier authorized to transact business in the state in which the vehicle, or vehicles, owned by such nonresident is registered, or in the state…

If any insurance carrier not authorized to transact business in the District of Columbia, which has qualified to furnish proof of financial responsibility defaults in any said undertakings or agreements, the Mayor shall not thereafter accept as proof any certificate of said carri…

(a) This chapter shall not be held to apply to or affect policies of automobile insurance against liability which may now or hereafter be required by any other law of the District of Columbia, and such policies, if they contain an agreement or are endorsed to conform with the req…

The owner of a motor vehicle may give proof of financial responsibility on behalf of his employee or a member of his immediate family or household in lieu of the furnishing of proof by any said person. The furnishing of such proof shall permit such person to operate only a motor …

The Mayor shall consent to the cancellation of any certificate of insurance upon the substitution and acceptance of other adequate proof of financial responsibility pursuant to this chapter.

Whenever any proof of financial responsibility filed under the provisions of this chapter no longer fulfills the purposes for which required, the Mayor shall, for the purpose of this chapter, require other proof as required by this chapter.

The Mayor shall upon request consent to the immediate cancellation of any certificate of insurance, or the Mayor shall waive the requirements of filing proof, in any of the following events: (1) In the event of the death of the person on whose behalf such proof was filed or the p…

(a) If an owner’s registration has been suspended hereunder, such registration shall not be transferred nor the vehicle in respect to which such registration was issued registered in any other name until the Mayor is satisfied that such transfer of registration is proposed in goo…

Any person whose license or registration shall have been suspended under any provision of this chapter, or whose policy of insurance, when required under this chapter, shall have been cancelled or terminated, shall immediately return his license and registration to the Mayor. If …

Any person willfully failing to return a license or registration as required in § 50-1301.70, or when otherwise requested in writing by the Mayor shall be fined not more than the amount set forth in § 22-3571.01 or imprisoned not to exceed 30 days, or both.

Any person who shall violate any provision of this chapter for which no penalty is otherwise provided shall be fined not more than the amount set forth in § 22-3571.01 or imprisoned not more than 90 days, or both.

All prosecutions for violations of this chapter shall be in the Superior Court of the District of Columbia, in the name of the District of Columbia, by the Corporation Counsel or any of his assistants.

Subchapter and section headings contained herein shall not be deemed to govern, limit, modify or in any manner affect the scope, meaning or intent of the provisions of any subchapter hereof.

(a) Any person in whose name more than 25 vehicles are registered in the District of Columbia may qualify as a self-insurer by obtaining a certificate of self-insurance issued by the Mayor as provided in subsection (b) of this section. (b) The Mayor may, in his discretion, upon t…

There is hereby authorized to be appropriated out of the General Fund of the District of Columbia such sums as may be necessary to carry out the provisions of this chapter.

Where any provision of this chapter, or any amendment made by this chapter, refers to an office or agency abolished by Reorganization Plan No. 5 of 1952, such reference shall be deemed to be the office, agency, or officer exercising the functions of the office or agency so abolis…