How can you verify the history of a vehicle record owner?

So how can you get vehicle information like ownership or background on a motor vehicle from the official records? As you know, motor vehicle information is normally kept by the Department of Motor Vehicles or some other titling division in your state, and you might want to do an owner’s check or background check on a vehicle.

The Driver’s Privacy Protection Act (DPPA)
How does that work? Well, be aware that in every state, the release of vehicle owner information is protected under a law called the Driver’s Privacy Protection Act or DPPA. It’s in U.S. Code 2721. It prohibits the disclosure of personal information which originates from a state Motor Vehicle Record. What that means is that your registration, your title, things that are in your driver’s license, things that pertain to your Motor Vehicle Record, disclosure of those is considered highly restricted personal information and must be justified by a permissible use.

Permissible Uses and Justifications
This permissible use table, these reasons you can get this, are the same for every state because it’s a federal law. So if you meet one of these permissible use categories, you can get the private information about a vehicle. If you fail to provide a justification, then you won’t get the records. Here’s an example of a form from one jurisdiction, but no matter where you are, there’s going to be a form that will have this same format.

Request Form Details
You have to put your name and address that’s requesting the form. You can’t do this anonymously. In fact, they’re going to keep the records for your request for between five and ten years, so if there’s any reason to find out who did the background on this vehicle, they can go back and find out that it was you. Then you can put the requested information, what types of records: driver’s license, registration, ownership, liens, dates. You want to know just current or history.

Standardized Permissible Uses
But the most important thing is the what’s called permissible uses. Permissible use is standardized in all 50 states because it comes from federal law, and you circle or check off the permissible uses. One is if you have written consent, meaning that are you getting your own records? Well, obviously you can give yourself consent, or if you’re a parent or legal guardian, you can request a copy of their record. Or if you request the record of another person, you have to have written and notarized consent. It can’t just be you forge their signature.

Examples of Permissible Uses
So what are the other reasons that you can get a vehicle background check done? One of these may apply to you, but let’s take a look and see what they are. If you’re a manufacturer and you need to notify people because of a recall or monitoring of vehicles, you can apply for release of information about a vehicle based on your status as a Vehicle Manufacturer. If you’re a government agency for the purpose of the agency to carry out its functions, an agency just can’t get it randomly; they have to have a reason that’s a legitimate reason for carrying out its functions. A court for the purpose of the court to carry out its function, so if there’s a court case or a lawsuit, the court can access your driving information.

Protection of Personal Information
By driving information, that means your name and address. Where this comes from is if you’re driving your vehicle and your license plate is on the back, if this wasn’t protected, anybody could look up where you live just by typing in your driver’s license or your license plate and finding your address. So if they didn’t like the way you were driving or you cut them off, if this law was not in place, somebody could write down your plate, run the plate, and come knocking on your door, punch you in the face if they think you cut them off.

Law Enforcement and Business Use
Reason number five is obviously a law enforcement agency can access this only for the purpose to carry out its functions. They can’t just do it randomly, just out of curiosity. Now an authorized agent or employee of a business can check the driving record but only to verify the accuracy of information. So if you apply to an insurance company and they want to verify what you’re saying is true, then they can do it or to confirm that the information is outdated, prevent fraud, pursue legal remedies, or collect a debt.

Civil Proceedings and Research Activities
So let’s say if you have a car loan and you stop paying your loan, the loan company can look up to make sure your address is still current. Now here’s where it gets interesting. If it’s authorized for use in a civil proceeding, meaning if you have a lawsuit and you need to find out who owns the vehicle or what vehicle somebody owns, you can petition the court or agency, including service of process, which means a subpoena, to get this information to execute and enforce judgment orders. So if you get a court order or if you’re involved with a lawsuit, you can use this DPPA process to get it.

Insurance and Towing Companies
If it’s authorized for research activities as long as the personal information is not published, meaning that if you’re doing research about how many blue Chevy Camaros are there in a certain area, you can do that as long as you don’t use the personal information. If you have permission in your insurance company and you want to verify something for investigating a claim, rating or underwriting, or anti-fraud, and you are an insurer, then you can do that, but as long as you only use it in connection with those purposes. You can’t, even if you’re an insurance company, get this information and use it to send out marketing or advertising. You have to use it for claims verification.

Private Investigators and Employers
If you’re a towing company or an impound company, you can use it to notify the owner. So even if you’re a towing company and you access it, if you use it for the wrong reason, that’s a problem. So if you’re a towing company and you check off box number 10 to authorize for use to notify the owners, but really you’re sending out a bunch of flyers to sell people cars, that’s not going to be any good. A licensed private investigator can verify driving records, and if it’s for a purpose, so just because you are a licensed private investigator, you can access the records but only for the purpose permitted under the DPPA. You can’t use it for marketing, advertising, sending out flyers; you have to use it for a legitimate purpose.

Toll Companies and Improper Access
If you’re an employer and you are issuing somebody a CDL or letting somebody use your license for cargo and they’re driving a commercial truck, commercial driver’s license, you have access to that. If you are a private toll company, meaning that somebody blows through a toll booth and you need to send them a bill from their license plate, you can do it. If you access information improperly, it’s enforced by the US Department of Justice. This is not like your local PD writes you a ticket; they may seek civil and criminal penalties for improperly obtaining, disclosing, or using the information. Private citizens may also seek civil damages.

Conclusion
So if you check off a box saying, “Yeah, I’m using it for this,” and really you’re doing something else, that’s going to be a problem. However, as a consumer, you can use this DPPA process to get driver records or ownership records or contact information for an owner for legitimate purposes. When we run a vehicle title search or title history for clients, we’ll give you what’s available in the public realm, things that don’t need this DPPA request, and will also send you the form for you to submit to get more detailed information like name and address if you’re permitted to do that. If you’re authorized, you will get that directly from the governing authority. So the Driver’s Privacy Protection Act protects people from having their vehicle information used for improper purposes, but it is available under the right circumstances if you submit the proper form, and every state has a different form.