Section 280-RICR-30-10-3.8 - RevocationA. Revocation Proceedings 1. If after the second notice the designated agent notifies the Division of Motor Vehicles that an owner of a motor vehicle failed to provide satisfactory proof of owner's insurance to the designated agent, the Division of Motor Vehicles:a. Shall commence registration revocation proceedings by sending written notification by mail to the vehicle owner, at the person's last known address as shown on the records of the Division of Motor Vehicles. The notification shall state: that revocation proceedings have been commenced against the vehicle owner's registration; include the exact date upon which registration will be revoked if a hearing is not requested; the legal consequences of operating a vehicle with a revoked registration and without owner's insurance; instructions on how to get the registration reinstated; and within ten (10) days after the date of the mailing of the notification that person may request a hearing before a hearing officer at the Division of Motor Vehicles at which time they may present evidence of proof of owner's insurance or proof of exempt status prior to the due date designated on the first and second request for insurance verification. Acceptable forms of proof shall include: (1) Letter from the insurance company stating the vehicle owner had insurance prior to due date listed on requests for insurance verification; or(2) Letter from insurance company showing the vehicle owner's exempt status prior to due date listed on requests for insurance verification.B. Request for Hearing 1. The request for hearing shall be filed with the Administrator within the (10) ten-day time limit. a. Content of Request for Hearing - The request for hearing must be in writing and must contain the vehicle owner's name, address, date of birth, license number, plate number, and the Vehicle identification number. It must state the following: (1) A statement of the nature of the matter which is disputed and of the facts on which the vehicle owner relies.(2) A statement of why the vehicle owner objects to the actions of the Division of Motor Vehicles, and any law, rule or regulation, which the vehicle owner desires to raise.(3) A statement of the type of relief the vehicle owner desires.b. Method of Delivery (1) Request for hearing may be transmitted via mail, e-mail or fax to the designated contact address. The contact address shall be provided on both requests for insurance verification and shall be provided on the Division of Motor Vehicles website at http://www.dmv.ri.gov/.c. Stay of Revocation (1) Upon receipt of a timely filed hearing request the Division of Motor Vehicles shall take no action to revoke the vehicle owner's registration. No action shall be taken by the Division of Motor Vehicles until after a hearing has been conducted and a decision has been rendered by the hearing officer.C. Conduct of Hearing 1. Shall be governed by Subchapter 00 Part 1 of this Chapter.a. Decision for the owner (1) Should the hearing officer find that the owner/operator was in compliance or had exempt status prior to the due date on the requests for insurance verification the Division of Motor Vehicles shall take no further action, including fines/fees, revocation or suspensions against the owner/ operator in regards to that contested case.b. Decision against owner (1) Should the hearing officer find that the owner/operator has failed to present credible evidence of compliance or exempt status prior to the due date listed on the requests for insurance verification the vehicle owner's registration shall be revoked D. Effect of Revocation 1. In accordance with R.I. Gen. Laws § 31-47.4-4(e) "a registration that has been revoked under this section shall not be reinstated and a new license or registration shall not be issued to the holder of the revoked registration." until all requirements for reinstatement have been fulfilled. a. Penalty for driving on revoked registration (1) Pursuant to R.I. Gen. Laws § 31-3-1 "It is a civil violation for any person to operate, or for an owner knowingly to permit to be operated, upon any highway any vehicle of a type required to be registered under this chapter which is not registered and for which the appropriate fee has not been paid or not registered as required in any other state."E. Post Revocation Hearing 1. In the event that a vehicle owner has failed to file a request for hearing in a timely manner thus resulting in revocation but believes they were in compliance with these regulations and the Rhode Island Mandatory Insurance requirements prior to the due date listed on the requests for insurance verification they may present such evidence to a hearing officer (acceptable proof of a vehicle owner's insurance/exemption to include those documents listed in § 3.8(A) of this Part). Upon a determination by a hearing officer that the vehicle owner was in compliance the revocation shall be rescinded and no action shall be taken against the vehicle owner in regards to that contested case.280 R.I. Code R. § 280-RICR-30-10-3.8
Adopted effective 12/31/2018