Ark. Code Ann. § 27-14-902 (2026)
Transfer or assignment by owner or lessee generally
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- Whenever the owner or lessee of a registered vehicle transfers or assigns his or her title, or interest thereto, the registration of the vehicle shall expire.
- The owner or lessee shall remove the license plate or plates therefrom.
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- The owner or lessee may have the plate or plates assigned to another vehicle upon payment of the fees required by law and subject to the rules of the Office of Motor Vehicle.
- Whenever the owner or lessee elects to assign the plate or plates to a replacement vehicle, the owner may display the plate or plates on the replacement vehicle prior to registering the vehicle within the time permitted by § 27-14-903 provided that the owner has complied with § 27-14-701(c).
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- The owner or lessee shall pay a transfer fee of one dollar ($1.00).
- If the fee for registering and licensing the vehicle to be registered is greater than the registration fee paid for the vehicle originally licensed, then the office shall, in addition, collect an amount equal to the excess payable for the vehicle to be registered.
- No refund will be due in the event that the fee for registering and licensing the vehicle to be registered is less than that represented by the license to be transferred.
- The owner or lessee shall pay any additional fee which shall be required under the registration laws of this state.
- The owner shall endorse an assignment and warranty of title upon the certificate of title for the vehicle, and he or she shall deliver the certificate of title to the purchaser or transferee at the time of delivery of the vehicle, except as provided in §§ 27-14-906 and 27-14-909.
History. Acts 1949, No. 142, § 48; 1955, No. 110, § 2; 1967, No. 465, § 23; A.S.A. 1947, § 75-148; Acts 1995, No. 268, § 3; 1999, No. 461, § 1; 1999, No. 1106, § 1; 2019, No. 315, § 3094.
Amendments. The 2019 amendment deleted “and regulations” following “rules” in (a)(3)(A).
Case Notes
Purpose.
The purpose of a registration statute is to protect bona fide purchasers of automobiles from fraudulent sales and to help identify the owners of automobiles being operated on the highway. It is not designed to change the law with regard to passage of title upon either an absolute sale or a conditional sale of a vehicle. Olin Mathieson Chem. Corp. v. Southwest Cas. Co., 149 F. Supp. 600 (W.D. Ark. 1957).
Bill of Sale.
Where truck owner transferred truck to attorney in payment of attorney's fees, failure of attorney to obtain the certificate of title at the time he received the bill of sale did not deprive him of title, for the certificate of title is not title itself but only evidence of it. House v. Hodges, 227 Ark. 458, 299 S.W.2d 201 (1957).
Forged Endorsements.
Forged endorsement on certificate of title does not pass title to purchaser. Blaylock v. Herrington, 219 Ark. 939, 245 S.W.2d 576 (1952).
Wife was not estopped from recovering her automobile from individual who secured possession by virtue of a forged endorsement on certificate by husband two days after marriage and who fled state with automobile for which he traded. Blaylock v. Herrington, 219 Ark. 939, 245 S.W.2d 576 (1952).
Noncompliance.
Lack of compliance with registration statutes does not prevent passage of title. Olin Mathieson Chem. Corp. v. Southwest Cas. Co., 149 F. Supp. 600 (W.D. Ark. 1957).