The following words and terms, when used in this chapter,
shall have the following meanings, unless the context clearly indicates
otherwise, or the words or terms conflict with a definition in the
Transportation Code, §
501.002, §
501.091, §
551A.001, or
Occupations Code, Chapter 2309.
(1)
Casual sale--The sale by a salvage vehicle dealer or an insurance company of
not more than five nonrepairable motor vehicles or salvage motor vehicles to
the same person during a calendar year. The term does not include:
(A) a sale at auction to a salvage vehicle
dealer;
(B) the sale of an
export-only motor vehicle to a person who is not a resident of the United
States; or
(C) a sale to an
insurance company, out-of-state buyer, or governmental entity.
(2) Commission--The Texas
Commission of Licensing and Regulation.
(3) Component part--A major component part as
defined by Transportation Code, §
501.091, or a
minor component part.
(4)
Department--The Texas Department of Licensing and Regulation.
(5) Executive director--the executive
director of the department.
(6)
Insurance company--
(A) a person authorized
to write automobile insurance in this state; or
(B) an out-of-state insurance company that
pays a loss claim for a motor vehicle in this state.
(7) Major component part--One of the
following parts of a motor vehicle:
(A) the
engine;
(B) the
transmission;
(C) the
frame;
(D) a fender;
(E) the hood;
(F) a door allowing entrance to or egress
from the passenger compartment of the motor vehicle;
(G) a bumper;
(H) a quarter panel;
(I) a deck lid, tailgate, or
hatchback;
(J) the cargo box of a
vehicle with a gross vehicle weight of 10,000 pounds or less, including a
pickup truck;
(K) the cab of a
truck;
(L) the body of a passenger
motor vehicle; or
(M) the roof or
floor pan of a passenger motor vehicle, if separate from the body of the motor
vehicle.
(8) Metal
recycler--A person who:
(A) is engaged in the
business of obtaining, converting, or selling ferrous or nonferrous metal for
conversion into raw material products consisting of prepared grades and having
an existing or potential economic value;
(B) has a facility to convert ferrous or
nonferrous metal into raw material products by method other than the exclusive
use of hand tools, including the processing, sorting, cutting, classifying,
cleaning, baling, wrapping, shredding, shearing, or changing the physical form
or chemical content of the metal; and
(C) sells or purchases the ferrous or
nonferrous metal solely for use as raw material in the production of new
products.
(9) Motor
vehicle--
(A) any motor driven or propelled
vehicle required to be registered under the laws of this state;
(B) a trailer or semitrailer, other than
manufactured housing, that has a gross vehicle weight that exceeds 4,000
pounds;
(C) a travel
trailer;
(D) an all-terrain vehicle
or a recreational off-highway vehicle, as defined by Transportation Code,
§
551A.001,
designed by the manufacturer for off-highway use that is not required to be
registered under the laws of this state; or
(E) a motorcycle, motor-driven cycle, or
moped that is not required to be registered under the laws of this
state.
(10) Nonrepairable
motor vehicle--means a motor vehicle:
(A)
that is damaged, wrecked, or burned to the extent that the only residual value
of the vehicle is as a source of parts or scrap metal;
(B) that comes into this state under a
comparable ownership document that indicates that the vehicle is
nonrepairable;
(C) that a salvage
vehicle dealer has reported to the Texas Department of Motor Vehicles under
Transportation Code §
501.1003;
(D) for which an owner has surrendered
evidence of ownership for the purpose of dismantling, scrapping, or destroying
the motor vehicle; or
(E) that is
sold for export only under Transportation Code §
501.099.
(11) Nonrepairable vehicle
title--A printed document issued by the Texas Department of Motor Vehicles that
evidences ownership of a nonrepairable motor vehicle.
(12) Salvage motor vehicle--A motor vehicle
that:
(A) has damage to or is missing a major
component part to the extent that the cost of repairs, including parts and
labor other than the cost of materials and labor for repainting the motor
vehicle and excluding sales tax on the total cost of repairs, exceeds the
actual cash value of the motor vehicle immediately before the damage;
or
(B) comes into this state under
an out-of-state salvage motor vehicle title or similar out-of-state ownership
document.
(13) Salvage
vehicle dealer--A person engaged in this state in the business of acquiring,
selling, repairing, rebuilding, reconstructing, or otherwise dealing in
nonrepairable motor vehicles, salvage motor vehicles, or, if incidental to a
salvage motor vehicle dealer's primary business, used automotive parts
regardless of whether the person holds a license issued by the department to
engage in that business. The term does not include a person not licensed as a
salvage vehicle dealer who:
(A) casually
repairs, rebuilds, or reconstructs not more than five nonrepairable motor
vehicles or salvage motor vehicles in the same calendar year;
(B) buys not more than five nonrepairable
motor vehicles or salvage motor vehicles in the same calendar year;
or
(C) is a licensed used
automotive parts recycler if the sale of repaired, rebuilt, or reconstructed
nonrepairable motor vehicles or salvage motor vehicles is more than an
incidental part of the used automotive parts recycler's business.
(14) Salvage vehicle title--A
printed document issued by the Texas Department of Motor Vehicles that
evidences ownership of a salvage motor vehicle.
(15) Used automotive part--A part that is
salvaged, dismantled, or removed from a motor vehicle for resale as is or as
repaired. The term includes a major component part but does not include a
rebuildable or rebuilt core, including an engine, block, crankshaft,
transmission, or other core part that is acquired, possessed, or transferred in
the ordinary course of business.