THIS IS INSTALLMENT # 2 OF THE CALIF. DMV OVERCHARGES, WITH
DETAILED INFORMATION ON THOSE OVERCHARGES.
PUBLIC CHEATED OUT OF MILLIONS
BY DEPARTMENT OF MOTOR VEHICLES
DELIBERATE OVERCHARGES AND ERRORS
COST THE PUBLIC MILLIONS
A LOCAL FIRM, DMV VEHICLE REGISTRATION AND FILING
SERVICE, OBTAINED PROOF THAT THE DEPARTMENT OF MOTOR
VEHICLES OVERCHARGES THE PUBLIC ON VEHICLE TRANSACTIONS.
REFUNDS MAY BE POSSIBLE- READ THE 1ST INSTALLMENT
THE RESULTING LOSS TO THE PUBLIC IS IN THE MILLIONS OF
DOLLARS.
TYPES OF DMV OVERCHARGES, FOLLOWED BY REFERENCES TO
ACTUAL CASE FILES DOCUMENTING THE OVERCHARGES IS SET
FORTH BELOW:
A. ILLEGALLY RAISING THE VEHICLE VALUE.
THIS IS AN INTENTIONAL ACT, which directly violates state
law and published DMV guidelines. As one DMV employee
exclaimed, when questioned about his having re-valued a
vehicle (we call iT BLUE-BOOKING) said "I know its wrong,
but they (office management) tell us to do it.".
Quite obviously the "unpublished" policy differs from the
published one.
This cheats the public out of money, EACH AND EVERY YEAR
THEY OWN THEIR VEHICLE.
The vehicle value is very important in determining the
annual registration fees for a vehicle. The higher the
value, the higher the registration fees will be. When
the DMV raises the value, from the stated value, as they
do in many cases, this illegally causes the public to pay
more to register and/or renew, in subsequent years, their
registrations. THIS, INTENTIONALLY, CHEATS THE PUBLIC
OUT OF MONIEY.
Both the law in the State of California (Revenue &
Taxation Code Sec. 10753) and the DMV "MANUAL OF
REGISTRATION PROCEDURES" (Sec. 35.000 and suppliment
VRP 91-8), which is the "Bible" of the DMV, mandate that
the DMV determine the "vehicle value", in most cases,
based upon the price that the customer stated that they
paid for the vehicle, or, in some cases, what the
customer stated the vehicle was worth.
THE DMV HAS NO RIGHT, LEGAL OR OTHERWISE, TO REVALUE
VEHICLES. THEY DO SO ARBITRARILY, AT THE WHIMS OF
TECHNICIANS AND MANAGEMENT. AND ONLY WHEN IT HURTS
(CHEATS) THE PUBLIC BY MAKING THEM PAY MORE FEES, AND
SOMETIMES PENALTIES, TO THE DMV.
WE HAVE NEVER SEEN, NOR HEARD ABOUT, ONE INSTANCE WHERE
THE DMV REVALUED A VEHICLE TO A LOWER VALUE. THIS WOULD
SAVE THE CUSTOMER FEES AND THE DMV WOULD NEVER DO THAT,
EVEN THOUGH MANY PEOPLE PAY MORE FOR A CAR THAN IT IS
WORTH.
Example: If a party purchased a car for $3,000 the vehicle
license fee should be $62, and it would cost approx.
$106, plus any applicable sales/use tax, to register the
car.
If the DMV jumped the value to $6,000, the license fee
would be $122, and it would cost approx. $166, plus any
applicable sales/use tax, to register the car.
This would cheat the owner out of $60 initially and.
over the first six years the owner would pay approx. $270
in illegal additional charges. THE OVERCHARGES WOULD
CONTINUE INDEFINITELY, UNTIL THE VEHICLE WAS SOLD.
NOTE: This works proportionately. If you pay $5,000 for a
car, and the DMV values it at $15,000, you would pay
over $200 in additional, illegal, charges the first year
and approx. $900 in overcharges over the first six
years.
IMPORTANT: PRIOR TO AUGUST, 1991 THIS ILLEGAL JUMPING OF VEHICLE
VALUES APPLIED TO: REVIVED JUNK VEHICLES, VEHICLES THAT
HAD DROPPED FROM THE RECORD, OR NEVER HAD BEEN
REGISTERED, AND OUT OF STATE VEHICLES. AFTER THAT DATE
THE IMPROPER RAISING OF THE VEHICLE VALUE IS DONE, IN
ADDITION TO THE FOREGOING CASES, ON ANY TRANSFER WHICH
THE TECHNICIAN, WITH THE BLESSING OF HIGHER AUTHORITIES,
FEELS THE VALUE OF THE VEHICLE MIGHT NORMALLY BE HIGHER
THAN THAT REPRESENTED BY THE CUSTOMER, OR EVEN EVIDENCED
BY THE BILL OF SALE.
The technician, manager, etc. would then look in one of
the car pricing guides, usually the Kelly Blue Book of
values, and take the low (wholesale) and high (retail)
prices, average them, and then use that value (only as
long as it is higher) to figure the vehicle license fee.
THIS IS IMPROPER, AND QUITE ILLEGAL, AS A READING OF THE
ABOVE CITED VEHICLE CODE AND REGISTRATION MANUAL SECTIONS
WILL EVIDENCE.
THIS IS APPARENTLY DONE AT EVERY DMV OFFICE THROUGHOUT
THE STATE, POSSIBLY HUNDREDS OF TIMES PER DAY. MOST OF
THE TIME THE PUBLIC DOES NOT EVEN KNOW THEY ARE BEING
RIPPED OFF. WHERE IS DAVID HOROWITZ WHEN YOU NEED HIM?
B. ERRONEOUSLY CHARGING USE TAX ON "VALUE", RATHER THAN THE
PROPER FIGURE OF THE SALES PRICE.
This is a one time charge, which is collected at the time
of registration.
EXAMPLE: 100 (Scott): Mr. Scott purchased an old,
1972, motorcycle, in extremely poor condition, for $7.00.
He did a good deal of repair work in fixing up the bike.
Being fair, he estimated the value at $500 at the time of
registration. The tax (at the 8.25% L.A. rate) would have
been $1.00. The technician attempted to charge $41,
which would have cheated the customer out of $40.
C. INTENTIONALLY AT TIMES, AND ERRONEOUSLY AT TIMES,
CHARGING USE TAX WHEN IT IS NOT LEGALLY DUE TO THE DMV.
THIS HAPPENS WHEN THE CUSTOMER HAS ALREADY PAID SALES TAX
ON THE VEHICLE PURCHASE, OR WHEN NO TAX IS DUE AT THE
TIME.
When a party buys a "junked" or "salvaged" vehicle from a
licensed dismantler they must pay sales tax at that time.
This is also true when a car is purchased from a licensed
dealer, dismantler, and/or manufacturer, and many
auctions, and when a vehicle is constructed from parts;
thus no "use tax" is to be collected by the DMV when the
car is registered. Reference registration manual section
28.100.
Title only" and "transfer only" registrations (two types
of taking title in DMV parlance- the vehicles are not
actually registered for use) are exempt from the payment
of use tax. Reference the "Manual of Registration
Procedures", sections 28.200 j & k.
There are also other exemptions, such as transfers
between certain family members.
The DMV intentionally charges the customer the tax in
some of the above situations, as is examples C 1 and C 2,
or through error. Additionally, it is not the DMV policy
to inquire, nor inform the public, when they are doing a
transfer, of the exemptions between certain parties, thus
the public is being bilked out of a lot of money, without
even knowing it.
C1 #1001 (Barrios): The customer purchased a
"junked" car from a salvage dealer. As is the case, the
sales tax was paid to the dealer, which is the law The
customer had a receipt showing that the tax had been
paid. The dealer subsequently went out of business. The
DMV forced the customer to pay the tax again, stating
that they, the DMV, may never get the tax from the
dismantler.
THIS HAD NOTHING TO DO WITH THE LAW. THE DMV "EXTORTED"
THE TAX FROM THE CUSTOMER, EVEN THOUGH THIS WAS ILLEGAL
AND AGAINST THEIR OWN STATED POLICY. THIS CHEATED THE
CUSTOMER OUT OF $132. Reference section 28.100, wherein
it is clearly stated that no use tax is due if the
vehicle was purchased from a licensed dismantler.
D. DMV INTENTIONALLY AND ILLEGALLY CHARGES FEES AND
PENALTIES ON NO RECORD, REVIVED JUNK, COLLECTOR CARS,
ETC. THESE FEES, AND COMPUTED PENALTIES, ARE CHARGED
FROM THE DATE OF PURCHASE, RATHER THAN THE DATE THE FEES
LEGALLY BECAME (BECOME) DUE, WHICH IS THE "DATE OF FIRST
OPERATION".
Registration manual sections 1.331, 1.332, 2.180, and
2.556 (10.) clearly establish that the fees are due from
the" date of first operation.".
THIS IS ANOTHER INSTANCE WHERE THE DMV INTENTIONALLY,
ILLEGALLY, CHEATS THE PUBLIC OUT OF THEIR MONEY. NOT
ONLY DOES THIS HAVE THE EFFECT OF FORCEING THE PUBLIC,
ILLEGALLY, TO PAY MORE FEES AT THE TIME OF REGISTRATION,
THIS CAN DRASTICALLY SHORTEN THE NUMBER OF MONTHS THE
REGISTRATION COVERS, AND THE CUSTOMER CAN USE THE CAR,
BEFORE THE NEXT YEAR'S FEES ARE DUE.
UPDATE: CHARGING EXCESS PENALTIES FOR DELINQUENT REGISTRATION
This major area is done throughout the State and is done
often. Major additional penalties are charged the
present, or subsequent owner, at the time the
registration is completed and the registration had
expired over one year previously and fees had been
previously paid. This does not happen all of the time
but it happens a lot of the time and results in serious
overcharges for the public. The dmv technician will
treat the transaction as a situation whereby
all of the fees and penalties are paid as of the date of
completion, AND CHARGE PENALTIES ACCORDINGLY. The proper
way is to evidence each payment when made and charge only
the penalty due for each delinquency in accordance when
the fees were paid. This results if a much lower total
penalty assessment and is the correct, legal, and honest
way it is supposed to be done.
EXAMPLE: 1st year delinquency penalty(after 30 days) is 60%, plus
the registration, which is due for each year; 2nd year is up to
80%; and the 3rd year is a whopping, unconscionable, 160%. If the
3rd year delinquent fees (now @160% penalty) had been paid after
they were first due, or even prior to the date of delinquency, but,
for whatever reason the registration wasn't completed, the (now)
third year delinquency would have either been 40% (the old first
year delinquency penalty) or there would have been none. By
treating all of the money as having been paid currently the old
(now 3rd year) fees would now bear a penalty of 160%. This is
likewise for the 2nd year. THIS HAPPENS A LOT.
There are numerous instances of additional abuses of the
public by the DMV. We have personally witnessed these
over the years, none of which should be permitted,
especially by a State agency which proclaims, on most
publications, to be "A PUBLIC SERVICE AGENCY".
FURTHER DEVELOPMENTS
ADDITIONAL DMV ABUSES
FOREIGNER CHEATED OUT OF $807 BY DMV SUPERVISOR.
Patty Davis was the registration supervisor at the Culver
City DMV field office. Tadayuki Sato was a visitor from
Japan.
Mr. Sato speaks almost no English. Mr. Sato purchased a
1950 Harley Davidson motorcycle to take back to Japan
with him. The motorcycle was currently registered. Mr.
Sato was given the properly endorsed ownership
certificate. The motorcycle remained at the sellers,
where it was to be trailered to the docks for shipment to
Japan.
Basically there is no sales tax due on a sale for export
if the vehicle is not used after the sale. Not only is
this factor applicable in this case, Mr. Sato needed
nothing else to ship the motorcycle out of the country.
Having the title is sufficient. Mr. Sato was told that
he needed a shipping document. Since he did not speak
English, there was some communication problem and Mr.
Sato went to the C.C. DMV field office by mistake. He
did not know what he was doing and, when asked for his
papers he told the technician that the motorcycle was
"for export" and gave the technician his title,
thinking he would get a shipping document. The
technician charged Mr. Sato $807. This was a transfer
fee of $9.00 and use tax of $798.00.
Mr. Sato paid the money because he was worried. He was a
foreign visitor in a government agency and was
intimitated, so he paid the amount requested. After Mr.
Sato left the counter he immediately used the public
phone in the field office and called the person he
purchased the motorcycle from, a Mr. Stephen Alamango.
Mr. Alamongo immediately called the field office and
talked to supervisor Davis, explaining the whole thing.
Mr. Alamongo explained that there were no taxes due, as
the motorcycle was being held for export and that Mr.
Sato did not need to do anything at the DMV, that he went
there by accident. Mr. Alamongo requested that Ms. Davis
cancel the transaction and refund Mr. Sato's money. Ms.
Davis had the authority to do so, but she refused.
Ms. Davis informed Mr. Alamongo that the technician did
not understand Mr. Sato when he talked about exporting
the motorcycle. Mr. Alamongo asked, "if you didn't
understand him then why did you take his money in the
first place?". Ms. Davis had no response. This happens
to be the way the DMV, and Ms. Davis in particluar,
handles things, BUT IS THIS THE WAY WE WISH TO TREAT
VISITORS TO OUR STATE? Just for the record, this is
also the way they (the DMV) treats residents.
CHARGING NEW OWNERS FOR PARKING TICKETS
RECEIVED BY THE PREVIOUS OWNER
We have experienced many instances where, at the time the
vehicle is being registered (transferred) to the new
owner, the DMV technician will attempt, improperly, to
charge a new buyer for outstanding tickets, which were
received when the vehicle was owned by the previous
owner. This is improper and, when pointed out to the
technician, the record is corrected and the erroneously
charged monies are taken off. Unfortunately many members
of the public do not know the law and are sadly
overcharged.
Until recently we had never seen the DMV, and this comes
directly from Sacramento DMV headquarters, attempt to
charge a new owner, on his registration renewal notice,
for the parking tickets acquired by the old owner.
In this case Mr. Diaz purchased his car on December 11,
1992. This date is clearly stated on the "CERTIFICATE OF
TITLE". The dates of the tickets are from September 30,
1992, which is clearly prior to Mr. Diaz purchasing the
car. DMV has no legal right to attempt to collect
tickets from a new owner for outstanding violations from
a previous owner.
The foregoing information has been provided, courtesy of:
DMV VEHICLE REGISTRATION AND FILING SERVICE.
THE FIRM REPRESENTS THE PUBLIC AND BUSINESSES IN ALL OF THEIR REGISTRATION
NEEDS. THIS COVERS THE INITIAL TRANSFER AND REGISTRATION OF ALL TYPES OF
MOTOR VEHICLES AND TRAILERS, AND ALSO INCLUDES BOAT REGISTRATIONS; THE
RENEWAL OF THE YEARLY STICKERS; THE REPLACEMENT OF LOST OR STOLEN TAGS,
PLATES, TITLES, ETC.; AND OBTAINING CUSTOM, NAME, LICENSE PLATES. THE
FIRM SPECIALIZES IN THE REGISTRATION OF OUT OF STATE VEHICLES, CLASSIC AND
HISTORIC CARS AND CAN ASSIST YOU WITH THE REGISTRATION OF JUNKED,
SALVAGED, LIEN SOLD VEHICLES, AND/OR VEHICLES THAT HAVE DROPPED FROM THE
DMV COMPUTER. HUNDREDS OF $$$$ CAN BE SAVED IN MANY INSTANCES IN THE
REGISTRATION OF THESE TYPES OF VEHICLES. ALL YOU HAVE TO DO IS KNOW THE
LAW AND HOW TO APPLY IT. EVEN IF YOU HAVE LOST ALL OF YOUR PAPERS, OR
NEVER RECEIVED THEM IN THE FIRST PLACE, THE FIRM CAN HELP YOU REGISTER
YOUR VEHICLE. E-MAIL THEM OR DROP THEM A LINE.
E-MAIL TO: dm...@leonardo.net or use direct mail to:
DMV REGISTRATION SERVICE; P.O. BOX 66373; L.A., CALIF. 90066-0373