46.2-629 - Odometer reading to be reported on certificate of title, application, or power of attorney.

§ 46.2-629. Odometer reading to be reported on certificate of title,application, or power of attorney.

A. Every owner or transferor of any motor vehicle, including a dealer, shall,at the time of transfer of ownership of any motor vehicle by him, record onthe certificate of title, if one is currently issued on the vehicle in theCommonwealth, and on any application for certificate of title the reading onthe odometer or similar device plus any known additional distance travelednot shown by the odometer or similar device of the motor vehicle at the timeof transfer. If, however, a transferor gives his power of attorney to adealer or other person for the purpose of assigning the transferor's interestin a motor vehicle, the transferor shall conspicuously record on the power ofattorney the reading on the odometer or similar device at the time of theassignment.

B. The Department shall not issue to any transferee any new certificate oftitle to a motor vehicle unless subsection A of this section has beencomplied with.

C. It shall be unlawful for any person knowingly to record an incorrectodometer or similar device reading plus any known additional distance notshown by the odometer or similar device on any certificate of title orapplication for a title, or on any power of attorney as described insubsection A of this section.

D. Notwithstanding other provisions of this section, an owner or transferor,including a dealer, of any of the following types of motor vehicles need notdisclose the vehicle's odometer reading:

1. Vehicles having gross vehicle weight ratings of more than 16,000 pounds;and

2. Vehicles that were manufactured for a model year at least 10 years earlierthan the calendar year in which the sale or transfer occurs and werepreviously exempt from recording an odometer reading on the certificate oftitle in another state, provided that the Department shall brand the titlesof all such vehicles to indicate this exemption.

E. Violation of this section shall constitute a Class 1 misdemeanor.

F. The provisions of subsections A and B of this section shall not apply totransfers under § 46.2-633.

G. This section shall not apply to transfers or application for certificatesof title of all-terrain vehicles or off-road motorcycles as defined in §46.2-100.

(1972, c. 851, § 46.1-89.1; 1978, c. 294; 1986, c. 490; 1989, c. 727; 2004,c. 724; 2006, c. 896; 2007, c. 225.)