§ 56-15-350 — Licenses in the name of the same applicants; denial, suspension, or revocation of license; grounds; procedure.

South Carolina § 56-15-350

• Jurisdiction: South Carolina
• Title 56: MOTOR VEHICLES
• Ch. 15: REGULATION OF MANUFACTURERS, DISTRIBUTORS, AND DEALERS

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(A) Any licenses in the name of the same applicant issued under this chapter may be denied, suspended, or revoked, if the applicant or licensee or an agency of the applicant or licensee acting for the applicant or licensee is determined by the Department of Motor Vehicles to have refused to comply with, been convicted of, or pleaded nolo contendere to any of the following offenses in this State or another jurisdiction in the United States: (1) made a material misstatement in the application for the license; (2) violated any provision of this chapter or the requirements contained in Article 3, Chapter 19, Title 56; (3) committed any fraud connected with the sale or transfer of a motor vehicle; (4) employed fraudulent devices, methods, or practices in connection with meeting the requirements placed on dealers and wholesalers by the laws of this State; (5) violated any law involving the acquisition or transfer of a title to a motor vehicle; (6) tampered with, altered, or removed motor vehicle identification numbers or markings; (7) to have violated any federal or state law regarding the disconnecting, resetting, altering, or other unlawful tampering with a motor vehicle odometer, including the provisions of 49 U.S.C. 32701-32711 (Title 49, Subtitle VI, Part C, Chapter 327); (8) refused or failed to comply with the department's reasonable requests to inspect or copy the records, books, and files of the dealer or wholesaler or failed to maintain records of each motor vehicle transaction as required by this chapter or by state and federal law pertaining to odometer records; (9) given, loaned, or sold a dealer license plate to any person or otherwise to have allowed the use of any dealer license plate in any way not authorized by Section 56-3-2320. Any dealer license plate issued to a dealer or wholesaler pursuant to Section 56-3-2320 which is determined by the department to be improperly displayed on any vehicle or in the possession of any unauthorized person is prima facie evidence of a violation of this section by the dealer or wholesaler to whom the license plate was originally issued. (10) accepted or delivered a certificate of title to any other dealer, wholesaler, or any other person in which the title or assignment of title is signed in blank; (11) committed any of the following crimes for which there is a conviction or plea of guilty or plea of nolo contendere and for which the conviction or plea date was ten or less years from the date of the application or renewal application of: (a) a violent crime as defined in Section 16-1-60; (b) a crime involving illegal drugs, other than simple possession of marijuana; (c) a crime involving tax evasion or failure to pay taxes or fees as required by law; (d) a crime involving the illegal use, carrying, or possession of a dangerous weapon; (e) any crime having an element of identity theft, misuse of another person's identity information, larceny, embezzlement, false statements, falsification of documents, false swearing or dishonest or deceitful dealing; or (f) a crime having an element of criminal sexual battery or conduct of any type or degree with a minor or an adult; (12) failed to pay on demand any civil penalty imposed by the department authorized by this chapter which the person or licensee has failed to appeal or for which the person or licensee has exhausted appeals; (13) failed to surrender a dealer license as required by this chapter or allowing any third party to sell any vehicles or operate a dealership; or (14) had a previous dealer license revoked for that applicant under this section. (B) Items (A)(1)-(11) do not apply to any pardoned or expunged crime within the ten-year time period. (C) The department may deny future dealer licenses for the same applicant if a previous dealer license was revoked for that applicant under this section. When assessing the license application, with respect to acts identified in item (A)(14) in a foreign jurisdiction, the department shall determine if the facts of the act would constitute a violation in this State. If the acts leading to a revocation in a foreign jurisdiction would not constitute a violation in this State, then the department may not use the act as sole justification to deny, suspend, or revoke a license. (D) The department shall notify the licensee or applicant in writing at the mailing address provided in his application of its intention to deny, suspend, or revoke his license at least twenty days in advance and shall inform the licensee of his right to request a contested case hearing with the Office of Motor Vehicle Hearings in accordance with the rules of procedure for the Administrative Law Court and pursuant to the Administrative Procedures Act of this State. A licensee desiring a hearing shall file a request in writing with the Office of Motor Vehicle Hearings within ten days of receiving notice of the proposed denial, suspension, or revocation of his dealer's or wholesaler's license. (E) Upon a denial, suspension, or revocation of a license, the licensee shall immediately return to the department the license and all dealer license plates.

Legislative History

HISTORY: 1983 Act No. 118 SECTION 12; 2006 Act No. 304, SECTION 1, eff May 24, 2006; 2006 Act No. 381, SECTION 10, eff June 13, 2006; 2008 Act No. 279, SECTION 12, eff October 1, 2008; 2023 Act No. 51 (S.549), SECTION 22, eff January 1, 2024. Editor's Note 2023 Act No. 51, SECTION 40(D), provides as follows: "[SECTION 40.](D) SECTIONS 15 through 28 take effect on January 1, 2024. Any dealership applying for or renewing licenses, or operating on a currently issued license on or after January 1, 2024, is subject to the provisions of SECTIONS 15 through 28." Effect of Amendment 2023 Act No. 51, SECTION 22, rewrote the section. ARTICLE 4 Nonfranchise Automobile Dealer Pre-licensing