Removing a motor vehicle trader from the Register
Cancellation of registration, cancellation process, grounds for disqualification, applications to ban a trader.
The Registrar must remove you from the Register if:
- your registration is cancelled
- you surrender your registration
- your registration expires.
Cancellation of registration
Registration can be cancelled if the Registrar is satisfied that:
- your application fee has been dishonoured
- any representations or declarations you made are false
- you ceased trading
- you are disqualified from registration.
The cancellation process
The Registrar must notify you in writing that your registration will be cancelled. The notice must give reasons for the cancellation and the date it will take effect. You then have 10 working days to give written reasons why your registration should not be cancelled.
If no written representations are received, the Registrar will record the cancellation. If the Registrar decides to cancel a registration despite your representations, you will be notified as soon as possible.
What happens if registration is cancelled because the motor vehicle trader is a "banned person"?
The Registrar will record the name of a "banned person" on the Banned Persons list. The list will be accessible online at the Motor Vehicle Traders Register website.
Registered trader stops trading
If you decide to stop trading, you must notify the Registrar and surrender your registration within 20 working days. You can do this by surrendering your registration online at the Motor Vehicle Traders Register website, or by notifying the Registrar in writing.
Banned and disqualified motor vehicle dealers
Grounds for disqualification as a motor vehicle trader.
An individual is disqualified from registration if he or she is a person who:
- is under 18 years of age
- is a banned person
- is an undischarged bankrupt
- has had their motor vehicle dealer's licence suspended within the previous 12 months (or cancelled within the last five years) under the former Act
- has had their salesperson's registration suspended within the last 12 months (or cancelled within the last five years) under the former Act
- held a motor vehicle dealer's licence under the former Act, and may be pursued by the Motor Vehicle Dealers Institute for a claim made against the Fidelity Fund within the previous five years
- has had their registration cancelled by the Registrar within the previous five years
- is prohibited or disqualified from managing a company under the Companies Acts 1955 or 1993
- has been convicted of a crime involving dishonesty within the last five years
- has been convicted of specific offences under the Fair Trading Act
- is subject to a compulsory treatment order under the Mental Health (Compulsory Assessment and Treatment) Act 1992
- is subject to a property order made under the Protection of Personal and Property Rights Act 1988.
A company is disqualified from registration if:
- the company is a banned person
- the company's motor vehicle licence, under the former Act, has been cancelled within the last five years
- the company held a motor vehicle dealer's licence under the former Act and may be pursued by the Motor Vehicle Dealers Institute for an amount arising out of a claim made against the Fidelity Fund within the previous five years
- the company is in liquidation
- the company's name has been removed from the register of companies
- a manager of the company is disqualified from registration in their own right
- the company's registration as a motor vehicle trader has been cancelled within the previous five years.
Applications to ban traders
Any person can apply to a District Court to have a person banned from participating in the business of motor vehicle trading. The Court may ban someone if the person has been convicted of a specified offence and the Court considers (or if there is sufficient evidence before it to indicate) that the person is not a fit and proper person to be in the business of motor vehicle trading. Some bans are automatically imposed by the MVSA, which means registration or renewal as a motor vehicle trader is prohibited because the trader committed offences under the MVSA while they were registered.
