1. For purposes of this section:
a. “Owner” means the person to whom the certificate of title for the vehicle has been issued or assigned or to whom a manufacturer’s or importer’s certificate of origin for the vehicle has been delivered or assigned. However, if the vehicle is leased, “owner” means the person to whom the vehicle is leased, not the person to whom the certificate of title for the vehicle has been issued or assigned or to whom the manufacturer’s or importer’s certificate of origin for the vehicle has been delivered or assigned.
b. “Leased” means the transfer of the possession or right to possession of a vehicle to a lessee for a valuable consideration for a continuous period of twelve months or more, pursuant to a written agreement.
2. a. Subject to paragraph “b”, in all cases where damage is done by any motor vehicle by reason of negligence of the driver, and driven with the consent of the owner, the owner of the motor vehicle shall be liable for such damage.
b. The owner of a vehicle with a gross vehicle weight rating of seven thousand five hundred pounds or more who rents the vehicle for less than a year under an agreement which requires an insurance policy covering at least the minimum levels of financial responsibility prescribed by law, shall not be deemed to be the owner of the vehicle for the purpose of determining financial responsibility for the operation of the vehicle or for the acts of the operator in connection with the vehicle’s operation.
3. A person who has made a bona fide sale or transfer of the person’s right, title, or interest in or to a motor vehicle and who has delivered possession of the motor vehicle to the purchaser or transferee shall not be liable for any damage thereafter resulting from negligent operation of the motor vehicle by another, but the purchaser or transferee to whom possession was delivered shall be deemed the owner. The provisions of section 321.45, subsection 2, shall not apply in determining, for the purpose of fixing liability under this subsection, whether such sale or transfer was made. [C24, 27, 31, 35, §4964, 5026; C39, §5002.07, 5037.09; C46, 50, 54, 58, 62, §321.51, 321.493; C66, 71, 73, 75, 77, 79, 81, §321.493] 95 Acts, ch 136, §1; 97 Acts, ch 108, §30; 2010 Acts, ch 1069, §101 Referred to in §321.45, 321.344A, 321.372A, 321A.1, 321P.7 Exemption from execution denied, §627.7\n\nTue Dec 09 22:17:01 2025 Iowa Code 2026, Chapter 321 (137, 2) §321.494, MOTOR VEHICLES AND LAW OF THE ROAD 268\n\n 321.494 through 321.497 Reserved.\n\n ACTIONS AGAINST NONRESIDENTS \n
Notes of Decisions
Cited in
122
cases (
2 in the last 5 years), 1947–2024 · leading case:
Zimmer v. Vander Waal, 780 N.W.2d 730 (Iowa 2010).
Zimmer v. Vander Waal, 780 N.W.2d 730 (Iowa 2010).
· cites it 28× “” Iowa Code § 321.493 (l)( x) (emphasis added).”
Wells v. Enter. Rent-A-Car Midwest, 690 N.W.2d 33 (Iowa 2004).
· cites it 24× “At issue on the appeal is whether the district court erred in allowing the jury to determine by interrogatory answer that the damages being sought were not caused by the motor vehicle, as required by Iowa Code section 321.493 (1999), which provides for owner’s liability “for…”
Weber v. Warnke, 658 N.W.2d 90 (Iowa 2003).
· cites it 54× “Iowa Code § 321.493 (Supp.1997). Iowa Code section 321.”
Smith v. CRST Int'l Inc., 553 N.W.2d 890 (Iowa 1996).
· cites it 32× “See Iowa Code § 321.493 . In addition, Smith claims that since Rapid is neither Symmond’s nor Smith’s employer, Rapid is not entitled to civil immunity under section 85.”
Veasley v. CRST Int'l Inc., 553 N.W.2d 896 (Iowa 1996).
· cites it 18× “The Veasleys commenced an action against Rapid Leasing based on the theory that, under Iowa Code section 321.493 (1993), as the vehicle’s owner, it was liable for the negligence of Powlistha.”
Carton v. Gen. Motors Acceptance Corp., 611 F.3d 451 (8th Cir. 2010).
· cites it 9× “The district court 1 granted GMAC’s motion to dismiss the claims, finding Iowa Code § 321.493 and 49 U.S.C. § 30106 (“Graves Amendment”) barred Appellants’ vicarious liability claim and the Graves Amendment also barred Appellants’ direct negligence claims.”
Briner v. Hyslop, 337 N.W.2d 858 (Iowa 1983).
· cites it 12× “They are additional circumstantial evidence of the intent of the party committing the act.”
Johnson v. Johnson, 564 N.W.2d 414 (Iowa 1997).
· cites it 32× “The district court instructed the jury that the all-terrain vehicle owner’s liability was limited by the consent provisions of Iowa Code section 321.493. The jury found that the owner was not liable because the operator exceeded the consent limitation the owner imposed on the…”
State Farm Auto. Ins. Co. v. Malcolm, 259 N.W.2d 833 (Iowa 1977).
· cites it 12× “The federal court judge ruled the claim against her was a separate and distinct action based on the Iowa ownership statute, Code section 321.493. On July 18, 1975, State Farm Insurance Company filed a petition seeking a declaratory judgment against its insureds, Ferris and Donna…”
Stuart v. Pilgrim, 74 N.W.2d 212 (Iowa 1956).
· cites it 14× “Section 321.493 of the 1954 Code of Iowa, which has been incorporated in our statutory law in substantially its present form since 1919 (see chapter 275, section 12, Acts of the Thirty-eighth (General Assembly) is herewith set out: “In all cases where damage is dope by any car…”
Desy v. Rhue, 462 N.W.2d 742 (Iowa Ct. App. 1990).
· cites it 18× “157, § 8 (codified at Iowa Code § 321.493 (1989) (second unnumbered paragraph)).”
— Iowa Code § 321.493(1) — 1 case
— Iowa Code § 321.493(1)(a) — 1 case
— Iowa Code § 321.493(2) — 4 cases
Weber v. Warnke, 658 N.W.2d 90 (Iowa 2003).
“Iowa Code § 321.493 (Supp.1997). Iowa Code section 321.”
— Iowa Code § 321.493(2)(a) — 2 cases
— Iowa Code § 321.493(3) — 1 case
— Iowa Code § 321.493(a)(1) — 1 case
— Iowa Code § 321.493(l)(a) — 3 cases
Wells v. Enter. Rent-A-Car Midwest, 690 N.W.2d 33 (Iowa 2004).
“At issue on the appeal is whether the district court erred in allowing the jury to determine by interrogatory answer that the damages being sought were not caused by the motor vehicle, as required by Iowa Code section 321.493 (1999), which provides for owner’s liability “for…”
— Iowa Code § 321.493(l)(b) — 2 cases
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