WAC 308-56A-500   Definitions.  The following definitions apply to terms used in chapters 46.12 and 46.16 RCW and chapter 308-56A WAC:

     (1) "Affidavit in lieu of title" is a written declaration confirming the certificate of ownership, registration certificate, validation tab are unavailable, lost, stolen, destroyed or mutilated. The affidavit in lieu of title may be used to release interest in the vehicle. The signature of the owner completing the affidavit in lieu of title must be notarized or certified as described in WAC 308-56A-270.

     (2) "Affidavit of loss" is a written statement confirming the certificate of ownership, registration certificate, validation tab or decal has been lost, stolen, destroyed or mutilated. The affidavit of loss release of interest form may be used to release interest in the vehicle and transfer gross weight license for that vehicle to a new owner. The signature of the owner completing the affidavit of loss release of interest must be notarized or certified as described in WAC 308-56A-270.

     (3) "Affixed" means attached.

     (4) "Brands" means a permanent notation on the certificate of ownership and vehicle registration certificate that records a circumstance or condition involving a vehicle.

     (5) "Brands incident date" is the date that a brand was first applied to a vehicle. For states/jurisdictions participating in the National Motor Vehicle Title Information System (NMVTIS), it's the date the brand was first reported. For all other states/jurisdictions, it is established by using the date the current title was issued. Brands on Washington records prior to the effective date of this rule will reflect a brand incident date equal to the date the last Washington certificate of ownership was issued.

     (6) "Certificate of ownership" (also referred to as "certificate of title" or "title") is a legal document indicating proof of ownership and will establish a fact or sustain a judgment unless contradictory evidence is produced. A certificate of ownership may be a document other than a title when a title document is not issued by a jurisdiction. For example, for Canadian vehicles, the certificate of ownership is the registration.

     (7) "Comment" means an indication on the certificate of ownership, vehicle title/registration application or vehicle registration certificate that relates to tax liability, type of ownership, title transaction type or a previous condition of the vehicle.

     (8) "Commercial parking company" means any business directly engaged in providing vehicle parking upon property owned or controlled by the business and approved for public parking of vehicles.

     (9) "Current license plate registration" means the current registration or one that has been expired less than one year.

     (10) "Declaration in lieu of title" is a written statement confirming the certificate of ownership, registration certificate, validation tab is unavailable, lost, stolen, destroyed, or mutilated. The declaration in lieu of title may be used to release interest in the vehicle. The signature of the owner completing the declaration in lieu of title must be signed under penalty of perjury, as described in WAC 308-56A-270.

     (11) "Declaration of loss" is a written statement confirming the certificate of ownership, registration certificate, validation tab or decal has been lost, stolen, destroyed, or mutilated. The declaration of loss release of interest form may be used to release interest in the vehicle and transfer gross weight license for that vehicle to a new owner. The signature of the owner completing the declaration of loss release of interest must be signed under penalty of perjury, as described in WAC 308-56A-270.

     (12) "Department" means the same as described in RCW 46.04.162.

     (13) "Department temporary permit" is a permit issued temporarily in lieu of permanent registration and license plates when required documentation is unavailable.

     (14) "Electronic filing" is the use of an electronic method to transmit information to the department that may include, but is not limited to, the use of the internet and facsimile.

     (15) "Involuntary divestiture" means a change in vehicle ownership without the registered owner's involvement.

     (16) "Joint tenancy with rights of survivorship" (JTWROS) means two or more people who own a vehicle in joint tenancy with the right to own individually if one of them dies.

     (17) "Jurisdiction code" means an abbreviation assigned by the department generally based on the U.S. Postal Service designation that indicates state, province, district, or country.

     (18) "Legal owner" means the same as described in RCW 46.04.270.

     (19) "Lien holder" means a person or entity that has a legal right or interest in another's property until a debt or duty that it secures is satisfied.

     (20) "Natural person" means a human being.

     (21) "Not eligible for road use" (NEFRU) means a vehicle that does not meet Federal Motor Vehicle Safety standards, other federal and/or state standards for public road use as adopted, applied, and enforced by the Washington state patrol described in RCW 46.37.005.

     (22) "A declaration under penalty of perjury" means a statement signed by the applicant to the effect - "I declare under penalty of perjury under the laws of the state of Washington that the information I have provided on this form is true and correct." Anyone who knowingly makes a false statement may be guilty of a crime under state law.

     (23) "Person" means the same as described in RCW 46.04.405.

     (24) "Personal representative" means:

     (a) An individual appointed by the court; or

     (b) An individual named in the last will and testament and confirmed by the court to manage the estate of a deceased person.

     Personal representative may also include executor, administrator, special administrator, and guardian or limited guardian and special representative as defined in RCW 11.02.005(1).

     (25) "Registered owner" means the same as described in RCW 46.04.460.

     (26) "Security interest" means a property interest created by agreement or by operation of law to secure performance of an obligation (repayment of a debt).

     (27) "Security interest holders" means in this instance, the same as "lien holder" as defined in subsection (16) of this section.

     (28) "Secured party" means in this instance the same as "lien holder" as defined in subsection (16) of this section.

     (29) "Standard brand" is a brand found on the brands list maintained by the National Motor Vehicle Title Information System (NMVTIS) program.

     (30) "Transferee" means a person to whom a vehicle is transferred, by purchase, gift, or any means other than by creation of a security interest, and any person who, as agent, signs an odometer disclosure statement for the transferee, when applicable.

     (31) "Transferor" means a person who transfers ownership in a vehicle by sale, gift, or any means other than by creation of a security interest and any person who, as agent, signs an odometer disclosure statement for the transferor, when applicable.

     (32) "Unique brand" means a brand issued by a state that is not participating in the National Motor Vehicle Title Information System (NMVTIS) program and does not appear on the brands list maintained by NMVTIS.

     (33) "Vehicle seller's report of sale" is a document or electronic record transaction that protects the seller of a vehicle from certain criminal and civil liabilities arising from use of the vehicle by another person after the vehicle has been sold or a change of ownership has occurred.

     (34) A "vehicle" is a device by which any person or property may be propelled, moved, or drawn upon a highway, excepting a device moved exclusively by human power or used exclusively upon stationary rails or tracks.

     (35) "Washington vehicle licensing office" means an office that is operated by the department or an agent or subagent appointed under RCW 46.01.140 for the purpose of carrying out the vehicle titling and registration provisions in Title 46 RCW.



[Statutory Authority: RCW 46.01.110 and 46.12.101. 06-23-038, § 308-56A-500, filed 11/7/06, effective 12/8/06. Statutory Authority: RCW 46.16.010. 05-23-135, § 308-56A-500, filed 11/22/05, effective 1/3/06. Statutory Authority: RCW 46.01.110. 05-07-152, § 308-56A-500, filed 3/23/05, effective 5/15/05; 04-08-081, § 308-56A-500, filed 4/6/04, effective 5/7/04; 02-19-016, § 308-56A-500, filed 9/9/02, effective 10/10/02. Statutory Authority: RCW 65.20.110. 00-13-083, § 308-56A-500, filed 6/20/00, effective 7/21/00; 00-06-004, § 308-56A-500, filed 2/18/00, effective 3/20/00; 90-11-091, § 308-56A-500, filed 5/18/90, effective 6/18/90.]