Wyo. Stat. § 31-2-104

Current through the 2024 legislative session

Section 31-2-104 - Transfer of ownership

(a) Except as otherwise provided in this section, the owner of a vehicle who sells or transfers his interest in a vehicle for which a certificate of title has been issued shall endorse an assignment and warranty of title upon the certificate for the vehicle with a statement of all liens and encumbrances thereon, which assignment, warranty and statement shall be signed and dated by the owner before a notarial officer and acknowledged thereby in the manner provided by law, to be dated and delivered to the transferee at the time of delivering the vehicle. Except as provided in subsection (b) of this section, the transferee shall present the certificate to a county clerk and apply for a new certificate of title within the same time periods as required by W.S. 31-2-201(a)(ii).

(b) If the transferee is a licensed dealer who holds the vehicle for resale, procures the certificate of title from the transferor and operates the vehicle only for demonstration purposes under dealer license plates, the dealer is not required to obtain a new certificate of title but may transfer the vehicle by an assignment and warranty of title upon the certificate of title or department approved statement of transfer form and deliver the certificate to a subsequent transferee.

(c) In the event of a transfer by operation of law of any interest in a vehicle as upon an order in bankruptcy or insolvency, execution sale, repossession upon default in the performance of the terms of a lease or sales contract or otherwise than by voluntary act of the person whose title or interest is transferred, the administrator, receiver, trustee, sheriff, creditor or other representative or successor in interest of the person whose interest is transferred shall forward to the county clerk an application for a certificate of title together with a verified or certified statement of the transfer of interest. The statement shall set forth the reason for the involuntary transfer, the interest transferred, the name of the transferee, the process or procedure effecting the transfer and other information requested by the county clerk. Evidence and instruments otherwise required by law to effect a transfer of legal or equitable title to or an interest in a vehicle in such cases shall be furnished with the statement. If a transfer of title to a creditor is accomplished in accordance with the provisions of this subsection, a creditor retains the right to seek any deficiency balance which may exist after sale, provided the creditor has complied with all applicable law, and the transfer by itself shall not be considered a strict foreclosure or an election to retain the collateral in satisfaction of an obligation as provided by W.S. 34.1-9-620 and does not affect the debtor's right to redeem the collateral under W.S. 34.1-9-623. If from the records of the county clerk there appears to be any lien on the vehicle which was recorded prior to the lien of the creditor applying for title and which has not been released, the certificate of title shall contain a statement of the lien. The creditor repossessing and applying for title to the vehicle shall notify all persons holding liens on the vehicle by certified mail return receipt requested at least fifteen (15) days prior to filing the application for title. Any proceeds from the sale, lease or other disposition of the vehicle shall be distributed in accordance with the provisions of W.S. 34.1-9-608.

(d) Repealed by Laws 2003, Ch. 33, § 2.

(e) Repealed by Laws 2001, Ch. 72, § 3.

(f) Any person knowingly providing false or incomplete information on any statement required by this act is guilty of a misdemeanor and upon conviction shall be fined not more than seven hundred fifty dollars ($750.00), imprisoned for not more than six (6) months, or both.

(g) Repealed by Laws 2009, Ch. 16, § 4.

(h) The requirement under subsection (a) of this section to deliver a certificate of title to a transferee at the time the vehicle is delivered does not apply to a transferor if:

(i) The certificate of title is being held by a bank or other financial institution on the date the vehicle is delivered. The transferor shall then deliver to the transferee a dealer's invoice or a signed bill of sale, in substantially the form specified in paragraph (ii) of this subsection, and the certificate of title shall be delivered to the transferee within thirty (30) days from the date of the sale; or

(ii) The transferor is an auctioneer of vehicles and transfers the vehicle in the course of his business as an auctioneer of vehicles or through an auctioneer of vehicles. The transferor or auctioneer shall then deliver the certificate of title to the transferee within thirty (30) days of the date of sale and shall deliver to the transferee at the time the vehicle is delivered a signed bill of sale in substantially the following form:

VEHICLE BILL OF SALE

I, (PRINTED NAME OF TRANSFEROR OR AUCTIONEER), on (date), hereby sell and convey all (my interest the interest of (name of current owner)) in the following described vehicle: (COLOR, YEAR, MAKE, MODEL, VEHICLE IDENTIFICATION NUMBER) to (PRINTED NAME OF TRANSFEREE) in exchange for: (sales price). I hereby state that the certificate of title for the above described vehicle is held by (PRINTED NAME OF TRANSFEROR-VEHICLE AUCTIONEER, BANK OR OTHER FINANCIAL INSTITUTION) and that within thirty (30) days, (PRINTED NAME OF TRANSFEREE) will be provided a properly executed title free of all liens for the vehicle unless otherwise specified in this bill of sale. I certify (or declare) under penalty of perjury under the laws of the State of Wyoming that the contents of this document are true and correct.

DATE: _________

_______________________________________

(TRANSFEROR'S OR AUCTIONEER'S SIGNATURE)

________________________________________________________________

________________________________________________________________

________________________________________________________________

(TRANSFEROR'S OR AUCTIONEER'S ADDRESS, PHONE NUMBER AND DRIVER'S LICENSE, IDENTIFICATION OR DEALER NUMBER)

(j) If a vehicle is held by two (2) or more persons as joint tenants with right of survivorship clearly stated on the certificate of title, following the death of one (1) of the joint owners a surviving owner may apply to a county clerk for a new certificate of title in the name of the survivor or, if more than one (1) owner survives, jointly in the names of the survivors. The application for a new certificate of title shall be accompanied by a certified copy of the death certificate of the deceased owner. The county clerk shall issue the new certificate of title as provided in W.S. 31-2-103(d), except that no sales or use tax shall be due when obtaining a certificate of title pursuant to this subsection.

(k) Notwithstanding the provisions of subsection (j) of this section, the surviving owner or owners of a vehicle held by joint tenants with the right of survivorship may transfer ownership without first obtaining a title in the name of the surviving owner or owners by complying with the requirements of subsection (a) of this section and providing the transferee with a certified copy of the death certificate of the deceased owner. Any applicable sales or use tax shall be paid pursuant to W.S. 39-15-107(b) or 39-16-107(b).

(m) If a vehicle is held by two (2) or more persons, any person identified as an owner on the certificate of title shall have the right to transfer all interest in the vehicle without the signature of any other owner on the title unless:

(i) The title states the vehicle is held in joint tenancy with right of survivorship or tenancy by the entirety;

(ii) The title states the vehicle is held by coowners in the conjunctive, by the use of the word "and" or other similar language, in which event transfer shall require the signature of each co-owner;

(iii) A transfer of all interests in the vehicle by an owner without the signature of any other owner is otherwise prohibited by law.

W.S. 31-2-104

Amended by Laws 2022 , ch. 83, § 1, eff. 7/1/2022.

Amended by Laws 2019 , ch. 194, § 1, eff. 1/1/2020.