100. Unless the provision or context otherwise requires, these
definitions shall govern the construction of this code.
102. "Ability to respond in damages" means financial
responsibility.
105. An "agricultural water-well boring rig" is a motor vehicle
which is used exclusively in the boring of water-wells on
agricultural property.
108. "Airbrakes" means a brake system using compressed air either
for actuating the service brakes at the wheels of the vehicle or as a
source of power for controlling or applying service brakes which are
actuated through hydraulic or other intermediate means.
109. "Alcoholic beverage" includes any liquid or solid material
intended to be ingested by a person which contains ethanol, also
known as ethyl alcohol, drinking alcohol, or alcohol, including, but
not limited to, alcoholic beverages as defined in Section 23004 of
the Business and Professions Code, intoxicating liquor, malt
beverage, beer, wine, spirits, liqueur, whiskey, rum, vodka,
cordials, gin, and brandy, and any mixture containing one or more
alcoholic beverages. Alcoholic beverage includes a mixture of one or
more alcoholic beverages whether found or ingested separately or as
a mixture.
For purposes of the Driver License Compact, "intoxicating liquor"
as used in Section 15023 has the same meaning as "alcoholic beverage"
as used in this code.
110. "Alley" is any highway having a roadway not exceeding 25 feet
in width which is primarily used for access to the rear or side
entrances of abutting property; provided, that the City and County of
San Francisco may designate by ordinance or resolution as an "alley"
any highway having a roadway not exceeding 25 feet in width.
111. "All-terrain vehicle" means a motor vehicle subject to
subdivision (a) of Section 38010 which is all of the following:
(a) Designed for operation off of the highway by an operator with
no passengers.
(b) Fifty inches or less in width.
(c) Nine hundred pounds or less unladen weight.
(d) Suspended on three or more low-pressure tires.
(e) Has a single seat designed to be straddled by the operator.
(f) Has handlebars for steering control.
111.3. An "all-terrain vehicle safety instructor" is a person who
is sponsored by an all-terrain vehicle safety training organization,
who has completed a course in all-terrain vehicle safety instruction
administered by an approved all-terrain vehicle safety training
organization, and who has been licensed by the department pursuant to
Section 11105.1.
111.5. An "all-terrain vehicle safety training organization" is
any organization which is approved to offer a program of instruction
in all-terrain vehicle safety, including all-terrain vehicle safety
instruction training, by the Off-Highway Vehicle Safety Education
Committee and which has been issued a license by the department
pursuant to Section 11105.6.
112. "Amber" has the same meaning as "yellow," and is within the
chromaticity coordinate boundaries for yellow specified in
regulations adopted by the Department of the California Highway
Patrol.
115. An "armored car" is a vehicle that is equipped with materials
on either the front, sides, or rear for the protection of persons
therein from missiles discharged from firearms.
165. An authorized emergency vehicle is:
(a) Any publicly owned and operated ambulance, lifeguard, or
lifesaving equipment or any privately owned or operated ambulance
licensed by the Commissioner of the California Highway Patrol to
operate in response to emergency calls.
(b) Any publicly owned vehicle operated by the following persons,
agencies, or organizations:
(1) Any federal, state, or local agency, department, or district
employing peace officers as that term is defined in Chapter 4.5
(commencing with Section 830) of Part 2 of Title 3 of the Penal Code,
for use by those officers in the performance of their duties.
(2) Any forestry or fire department of any public agency or fire
department organized as provided in the Health and Safety Code.
(c) Any vehicle owned by the state, or any bridge and highway
district, and equipped and used either for fighting fires, or towing
or servicing other vehicles, caring for injured persons, or repairing
damaged lighting or electrical equipment.
(d) Any state-owned vehicle used in responding to emergency fire,
rescue or communications calls and operated either by the Office of
Emergency Services or by any public agency or industrial fire
department to which the Office of Emergency Services has assigned the
vehicle.
(e) Any vehicle owned or operated by any department or agency of
the United States government when the vehicle is used in responding
to emergency fire, ambulance, or lifesaving calls or is actively
engaged in law enforcement work.
(f) Any vehicle for which an authorized emergency vehicle permit
has been issued by the Commissioner of the California Highway Patrol.
165.5. No act or omission of any rescue team operating in
conjunction with an authorized emergency vehicle as defined in
Section 165, while attempting to resuscitate any person who is in
immediate danger of loss of life, shall impose any liability upon the
rescue team or the owners or operators of any authorized emergency
vehicle, if good faith is exercised.
For the purposes of this section, "rescue team" means a special
group of physicians and surgeons, nurses, volunteers, or employees of
the owners or operators of the authorized emergency vehicle who have
been trained in cardiopulmonary resuscitation and have been
designated by the owners or operators of the emergency vehicle to
attempt to resuscitate persons who are in immediate danger of loss of
life in cases of emergency.
This section shall not relieve the owners or operators of any
other duty imposed upon them by law for the designation and training
of members of a rescue team or for any provisions regarding
maintenance of equipment to be used by the rescue team.
Members of a rescue team shall receive the training in a program
approved by, or conforming to, standards prescribed by an emergency
medical care committee established pursuant to Article 3 (commencing
with Section 1797.270) of Chapter 4 of Division 2.5 of the Health and
Safety Code, or a voluntary area health planning agency established
pursuant to Section 127155 of the Health and Safety Code.
166. An "autobroker" or "auto buying service" is a dealer, as
defined in Section 285, who engages in the business of brokering, as
defined in Section 232.5.
210. An "automated enforcement system" is any system operated by a
governmental agency, in cooperation with a law enforcement agency,
that photographically records a driver's responses to a rail or rail
transit signal or crossing gate, or both, or to an official traffic
control signal described in Section 21450, and is designed to obtain
a clear photograph of a vehicle's license plate and the driver of the
vehicle.
220. An "automobile dismantler" is any person not otherwise
expressly excluded by Section 221 who:
(a) Is engaged in the business of buying, selling, or dealing in
vehicles of a type required to be registered under this code,
including nonrepairable vehicles, for the purpose of dismantling the
vehicles, who buys or sells the integral parts and component
materials thereof, in whole or in part, or deals in used motor
vehicle parts. This section does not apply to the occasional and
incidental dismantling of vehicles by dealers who have secured
dealers plates from the department for the current year whose
principal business is buying and selling new and used vehicles, or by
owners who desire to dismantle not more than three personal vehicles
within any 12-month period.
(b) Notwithstanding the provisions of subdivision (a), keeps or
maintains on real property owned by him, or under his possession or
control, two or more unregistered motor vehicles no longer intended
for, or in condition for, legal use on the highways, whether for the
purpose of resale of used parts, for the purpose of reclaiming for
use some or all of the materials, whether metal, glass, fabric, or
otherwise, or to dispose of them, or for any other purpose.
221. (a) The term "automobile dismantler" does not include any of
the following:
(1) The owner or operator of any premises on which two or more
unregistered and inoperable vehicles are held or stored, if the
vehicles are used for restoration or replacement parts or otherwise,
in conjunction with any of the following:
(A) Any business of a licensed dealer, manufacturer, or
transporter.
(B) The operation and maintenance of any fleet of motor vehicles
used for the transportation of persons or property.
(C) Any agricultural, farming, mining, or ranching business that
does not sell parts of the vehicles, except for either of the
following purposes:
(i) For use in repairs performed by that business.
(ii) For use by a licensed dismantler or an entity described in
paragraph (3).
(D) Any motor vehicle repair business registered with the Bureau
of Automotive Repair, or those exempt from registration under the
Business and Professions Code or applicable regulations, that does
not sell parts of the vehicles, except for either of the following
purposes:
(i) For use in repairs performed by that business.
(ii) For use by a licensed dismantler or an entity described in
paragraph (3).
(2) Any person engaged in the restoration of vehicles of the type
described in Section 5004 or in the restoration of other vehicles
having historic or classic significance.
(3) The owner of a steel mill, scrap metal processing facility, or
similar establishment purchasing vehicles of a type subject to
registration, not for the purpose of selling the vehicles, in whole
or in part, but exclusively for the purpose of reducing the vehicles
to their component materials, if either the facility obtains, on a
form approved or provided by the department, a certification by the
person from whom the vehicles are obtained that each of the vehicles
has been cleared for dismantling pursuant to Section 5500 or 11520,
or the facility complies with Section 9564.
(4) Any person who acquires used parts or components for resale
from vehicles which have been previously cleared for dismantling
pursuant to Section 5500 or 11520.
Nothing in this paragraph permits a dismantler to acquire or sell
used parts or components during the time the dismantler license is
under suspension.
(b) Any vehicle acquired for the purpose specified in paragraph
(3) of subdivision (a) from other than a licensed dismantler, or from
other than an independent hauler who obtained the vehicle, or parts
thereof from a licensed dismantler, shall be accompanied by either a
receipt issued by the department evidencing proof of clearance for
dismantling under Section 5500, or a copy of the ordinance or order
issued by a local authority for the abatement of the vehicle pursuant
to Section 22660. The steel mill, scrap metal processing facility,
or similar establishment acquiring the vehicle shall attach the form
evidencing clearance or abatement to the certification required
pursuant to this section.
All forms specified in paragraph (3) of subdivision (a) and in
this subdivision shall be available for inspection by a peace officer
during business hours.
223. Any reference in this code to "automobile driver training"
shall be deemed to refer to the laboratory phase of driver education
described by Section 51852 of the Education Code.
225. An "auxiliary dolly" is a vehicle, not designed for carrying
persons or property on its own structure, which is so constructed and
used in conjunction with a semitrailer as to support a portion of
the weight of the semitrailer and any load thereon, but not
permanently attached to the semitrailer, although a part of the
weight of such dolly may rest on another vehicle.
230. An "axle" is a structure or portion of a structure consisting
of one or more shafts, spindles, or bearings in the same vertical
transverse plane by means of which, in conjunction with wheels
mounted on said shafts, spindles, or bearings, a portion of the
weight of a vehicle and its load, if any, is continuously transmitted
to the roadway when the vehicle is in motion.
230.5. A "B-train assembly" is a rigid frame extension attached to
the rear frame of a semitrailer which allows for a fifth wheel
connection point for a second semitrailer.
231. A bicycle is a device upon which any person may ride,
propelled exclusively by human power through a belt, chain, or gears,
and having one or more wheels. Persons riding bicycles are subject
to the provisions of this code specified in Sections 21200 and
21200.5.
232. The "board" is the New Motor Vehicle Board.
232.5. "Brokering" is an arrangement under which a dealer, for a
fee or other consideration, regardless of the form or time of
payment, provides or offers to provide the service of arranging,
negotiating, assisting, or effectuating the purchase of a new or used
motor vehicle, not owned by the dealer, for another or others.
233. (a) Except as provided in subdivision (b), a "bus" is any
vehicle, including a trailer bus, designed, used, or maintained for
carrying more than 15 persons including the driver.
(b) A vehicle designed, used, or maintained for carrying more than
10 persons, including the driver, which is used to transport persons
for compensation or profit, or is used by any nonprofit organization
or group, is also a bus.
(c) This section does not alter the definition of a schoolbus,
school pupil activity bus, general public paratransit vehicle, farm
labor vehicle, or youth bus.
(d) A vanpool vehicle is not a bus.
234. A "business" includes a proprietorship, partnership,
corporation, and any other form of commercial enterprise.
235. A "business district" is that portion of a highway and the
property contiguous thereto (a) upon one side of which highway, for a
distance of 600 feet, 50 percent or more of the contiguous property
fronting thereon is occupied by buildings in use for business, or (b)
upon both sides of which highway, collectively, for a distance of
300 feet, 50 percent or more of the contiguous property fronting
thereon is so occupied. A business district may be longer than the
distances specified in this section if the above ratio of buildings
in use for business to the length of the highway exists.
236. A "business representative" means a proprietor, a limited or
general partner, a managerial employee, a stockholder, a director, or
an officer who is active in the management, direction, and control
of that part of a business which is a licensed activity.
240. In determining whether a highway is within a business or
residence district, the following limitations shall apply and shall
qualify the definitions in Sections 235 and 515:
(a) No building shall be regarded unless its entrance faces the
highway and the front of the building is within 75 feet of the
roadway.
(b) Where a highway is physically divided into two or more
roadways only those buildings facing each roadway separately shall be
regarded for the purpose of determining whether the roadway is
within a district.
(c) All churches, apartments, hotels, multiple dwelling houses,
clubs, and public buildings, other than schools, shall be deemed to
be business structures.
(d) A highway or portion of a highway shall not be deemed to be
within a district regardless of the number of buildings upon the
contiguous property if there is no right of access to the highway by
vehicles from the contiguous property.
242. A "camp trailer" is a vehicle designed to be used on a highway,
capable of human habitation for camping or recreational purposes,
that does not exceed 16 feet in overall length from the foremost
point of the trailer hitch to the rear extremity of the trailer body
and does not exceed 96 inches in width and includes any tent trailer.
Where a trailer telescopes for travel, the size shall apply to the
trailer as fully extended. Notwithstanding any other provision of
law, a camp trailer shall not be deemed to be a trailer coach.
243. A "camper" is a structure designed to be mounted upon a motor
vehicle and to provide facilities for human habitation or camping
purposes. A camper having one axle shall not be considered a
vehicle.
245. A "carry-all" is that type of earth-moving equipment which is
not self-propelled but which is designed for use behind tractors or
other motive power and which is self-loading by means of a cutting
blade which is lowered at an angle to dig into the ground. The term
includes, but is not limited to, such types of vehicles as carry the
trade names of LaPlant-Choate, LeTourneau, and Be Ge.
246. A "certificate of compliance" for the purposes of this code is
an electronic or printed document issued by a state agency, board,
or commission, or authorized person, setting forth that the
requirements of a particular law, rule or regulation, within its
jurisdiction to regulate or administer has been satisfied.
250. A "chop shop" is any building, lot, or other premises where
any person has been engaged in altering, destroying, disassembling,
dismantling, reassembling, or storing any motor vehicle or motor
vehicle part known to be illegally obtained by theft, fraud, or
conspiracy to defraud, in order to do either of the following:
(a) Alter, counterfeit, deface, destroy, disguise, falsify, forge,
obliterate, or remove the identity, including the vehicle
identification number, of a motor vehicle or motor vehicle part, in
order to misrepresent the identity of the motor vehicle or motor
vehicle part, or to prevent the identification of the motor vehicle
or motor vehicle part.
(b) Sell or dispose of the motor vehicle or motor vehicle part.
255. "City" includes every city and city and county within this
State.
257. A "clean fuel vehicle" means any passenger or commercial
vehicle or pickup truck that is fueled by alternative fuels, as
defined in Section 301 of the Energy Policy Act of 1992 (P.L.
102-486), and produces emissions which do not exceed whichever of the
following standards, as defined by regulations of the State Air
Resources Board in effect on January 1, 1994, is applicable to the
model year of the vehicle:
(a) For a vehicle of the 1994 to 1996, inclusive, model year, the
emission standard applicable to a transitional low-emission vehicle.
(b) For a vehicle of the 1997 model year, the emission standard
applicable to a low-emission vehicle.
(c) For a vehicle of the 1998 to 2000, inclusive, model year, the
emission standard applicable to an ultra low-emission vehicle.
260. (a) A "commercial vehicle" is a motor vehicle of a type
required to be registered under this code used or maintained for the
transportation of persons for hire, compensation, or profit or
designed, used, or maintained primarily for the transportation of
property.
(b) Passenger vehicles which are not used for the transportation
of persons for hire, compensation, or profit and housecars are not
commercial vehicles. This subdivision shall not apply to Chapter 4
(commencing with Section 6700) of Division 3.
(c) Any vanpool vehicle is not a commercial vehicle.
(d) The definition of a commercial vehicle in this section does
not apply to Chapter 7 (commencing with Section 15200) of Division 6.
265. The "commissioner" is the Commissioner of the California
Highway Patrol.
266. A "consignment" is an arrangement under which a dealer agrees
to accept possession of a vehicle of a type required to be registered
under this code from an owner for the purpose of selling the vehicle
and to pay the owner or the owner's designee from the proceeds of
the sale.
267. A "converter" is a person, other than a vehicle manufacturer,
who, prior to the retail sale of a new vehicle, does any of the
following to the vehicle:
(a) Assembles, installs, or affixes a body, cab, or special
equipment to the vehicle chassis.
(b) Substantially adds to, subtracts from, or modifies the
vehicle, if it is a previously assembled or manufactured new vehicle.
270. "County" includes every county and city and county within this
State.
273. A "crib sheet" or "cribbing device" is any paper or device
designed for cheating by supplying examination answers without
questions to an applicant for the purpose of fraudulently qualifying
the applicant for any class of driver's license, permit, or
certificate.
275. "Crosswalk" is either:
(a) That portion of a roadway included within the prolongation or
connection of the boundary lines of sidewalks at intersections where
the intersecting roadways meet at approximately right angles, except
the prolongation of such lines from an alley across a street.
(b) Any portion of a roadway distinctly indicated for pedestrian
crossing by lines or other markings on the surface.
Notwithstanding the foregoing provisions of this section, there
shall not be a crosswalk where local authorities have placed signs
indicating no crossing.
280. "Darkness" is any time from one-half hour after sunset to
one-half hour before sunrise and any other time when visibility is
not sufficient to render clearly discernible any person or vehicle on
the highway at a distance of 1,000 feet.
285. "Dealer" is a person not otherwise expressly excluded by
Section 286 who:
(a) For commission, money, or other thing of value, sells,
exchanges, buys, or offers for sale, negotiates or attempts to
negotiate, a sale or exchange of an interest in, a vehicle subject to
registration, a motorcycle subject to identification under this
code, or a trailer subject to identification pursuant to Section
5014.1, or induces or attempts to induce any person to buy or
exchange an interest in a vehicle and, who receives or expects to
receive a commission, money, brokerage fees, profit, or any other
thing of value, from either the seller or purchaser of the vehicle.
(b) Is engaged wholly or in part in the business of selling
vehicles or buying or taking in trade, vehicles for the purpose of
resale, selling, or offering for sale, or consigned to be sold, or
otherwise dealing in vehicles, whether or not the vehicles are owned
by the person.
286. The term "dealer" does not include any of the following:
(a) Insurance companies, banks, finance companies, public
officials, or any other person coming into possession of vehicles in
the regular course of business, who sells vehicles under a
contractual right or obligation, in performance of an official duty,
or in authority of any court of law, if the sale is for the purpose
of saving the seller from loss or pursuant to the authority of a
court.
(b) Persons who sell or distribute vehicles of a type subject to
registration or trailers subject to identification pursuant to
Section 5014.1 for a manufacturer to vehicle dealers licensed under
this code, or who are employed by manufacturers or distributors to
promote the sale of vehicles dealt in by those manufacturers or
distributors. However, any of those persons who also sell vehicles
at retail are vehicle dealers and are subject to this code.
(c) Persons regularly employed as salespersons by vehicle dealers
licensed under this code while acting within the scope of that
employment.
(d) Persons engaged exclusively in the bona fide business of
exporting vehicles or of soliciting orders for the sale and delivery
of vehicles outside the territorial limits of the United States, if
no federal excise tax is legally payable or refundable on any of the
transactions. Persons not engaged exclusively in the bona fide
business of exporting vehicles, but who are engaged in the business
of soliciting orders for the sale and delivery of vehicles, outside
the territorial limits of the United States are exempt from licensure
as dealers only if their sales of vehicles produce less than 10
percent of their total gross revenue from all business transacted.
(e) Persons not engaged in the purchase or sale of vehicles as a
business, who dispose of any vehicle acquired and used in good faith,
for their own personal use, or for use in their business, and not
for the purpose of avoiding the provisions of this code.
(f) Persons who are engaged in the purchase, sale, or exchange of
vehicles, other than motorcycles or trailers subject to
identification under this code, which are not intended for use on the
highways.
(g) Persons temporarily retained as auctioneers solely for the
purpose of disposing of vehicle stock inventories by means of public
auction on behalf of the owners at the owners' place of business, or
as otherwise approved by the department, if intermediate physical
possession or control of, or an ownership interest in, the inventory
is not conveyed to the persons so retained.
(h) Persons who are engaged exclusively in the business of
purchasing, selling, servicing, or exchanging racing vehicles, parts
for racing vehicles, and trailers designed and intended by the
manufacturer to be used exclusively for carrying racing vehicles.
For purposes of this subdivision, "racing vehicle" means a motor
vehicle of a type used exclusively in a contest of speed or in a
competitive trial of speed which is not intended for use on the
highways.
(i) Any person who is a lessor.
(j) Any person who is a renter.
(k) Any salvage pool.
(l) Any yacht broker who is subject to the Yacht and Ship Brokers
Act (Article 2 (commencing with Section 700) of Chapter 5 of Division
3 of the Harbors and Navigation Code) and who sells used boat
trailers in conjunction with the sale of a vessel.
(m) Any licensed automobile dismantler who sells vehicles that
have been reported for dismantling as provided in Section 11520.
(n) The Director of Corrections when selling vehicles pursuant to
Section 2813.5 of the Penal Code.
(o) (1) Any public or private nonprofit charitable, religious, or
educational institution or organization that sells vehicles if all of
the following conditions are met:
(A) The institution or organization qualifies for state tax-exempt
status under Section 23701d of the Revenue and Taxation Code, and
tax-exempt status under Section 501(c)(3) of the federal Internal
Revenue Code.
(B) The vehicles sold were donated to the nonprofit charitable,
religious, or educational institution or organization.
(C) The vehicles subject to retail sale meet all of the applicable
equipment requirements of Division 12 (commencing with Section
24000) and are in compliance with emission control requirements as
evidenced by the issuance of a certificate pursuant to subdivision
(b) of Section 44015 of the Health and Safety Code. Under no
circumstances may any institution or organization transfer the
responsibility of obtaining a smog inspection certificate to the
buyer of the vehicle.
(D) The proceeds of the sale of the vehicles are retained by that
institution or organization for its charitable, religious, or
educational purposes.
(2) An institution or organization described in paragraph (1) may
sell vehicles on behalf of another institution or organization under
the following conditions:
(A) The nonselling institution or organization meets the
requirements of paragraph (1).
(B) The selling and nonselling institutions or organizations enter
into a signed, written agreement pursuant to subparagraph (A) of
paragraph (3) of subdivision (a) of Section 1660.
(C) The selling institution or organization transfers the proceeds
from the sale of each vehicle to the nonselling institution or
organization within 45 days of the sale. All net proceeds
transferred to the nonselling institution or organization shall
clearly be identifiable to the sale of a specific vehicle. The
selling institution or organization may retain a percentage of the
proceeds from the sale of a particular vehicle. However, any
retained proceeds shall be used by the selling institution or
organization for its charitable, religious, or educational purposes.
(D) At the time of transferring the proceeds, the selling
institution or organization shall provide to the nonselling
institution or organization, an itemized listing of the vehicles sold
and the amount for which each vehicle was sold.
(E) In the event the selling institution or organization cannot
complete a retail sale of a particular vehicle, or if the vehicle
cannot be transferred as a wholesale transaction to a dealer licensed
under this code, the vehicle shall be returned to the nonselling
institution or organization and the written agreement revised to
reflect that return. Under no circumstances may a selling
institution or organization transfer or donate the vehicle to a third
party that is excluded from the definition of a dealer under this
section.
(3) An institution or organization described in this subdivision
shall retain all records required to be retained pursuant to Section
1660.
(p) Any motor club, as defined in Section 12142 of the Insurance
Code, that does not arrange or negotiate individual motor vehicle
purchase transactions on behalf of its members but refers members to
a new motor vehicle dealer for the purchase of a new motor vehicle
and does not receive a fee from the dealer contingent upon the sale
of the vehicle.
288. "Declared combined gross weight" equals the total unladen
weight of the combination of vehicles plus the heaviest load that
will be transported by that combination of vehicles.
289. "Declared gross vehicle weight" means weight that equals the
total unladen weight of the vehicle plus the heaviest load that will
be transported on the vehicle.
290. "Department" means the Department of Motor Vehicles except,
when used in Chapter 2 (commencing with Section 2100) of Division 2
and in Divisions 11 (commencing with Section 21000), 12 (commencing
with Section 24000), 13 (commencing with Section 29000), 14
(commencing with Section 31600), 14.1 (commencing with Section
32000), 14.3 (commencing with Section 32100), 14.5 (commencing with
Section 33000), 14.7 (commencing with Section 34000), and 14.8
(commencing with Section 34500), it shall mean the Department of the
California Highway Patrol.
291. Any reference in this code to the Department of Public Works
shall be deemed to refer to the Department of Transportation, which
is part of the Business, Transportation and Housing Agency as
provided by Section 13975 of the Government Code.
295. The "director" is the Director of Motor Vehicles.
295.5. A "disabled person" is any of the following:
(a) Any person who has lost, or has lost the use of, one or more
lower extremities or both hands, or who has significant limitation in
the use of lower extremities, or who has a diagnosed disease or
disorder which substantially impairs or interferes with mobility, or
who is so severely disabled as to be unable to move without the aid
of an assistant device.
(b) Any person who is blind to the extent that the person's
central visual acuity does not exceed 20/200 in the better eye, with
corrective lenses, as measured by the Snellen test, or visual acuity
that is greater than 20/200, but with a limitation in the field of
vision such that the widest diameter of the visual field subtends an
angle not greater than 20 degrees.
(c) Any person who suffers from lung disease to the extent of any
of the following:
(1) The person's forced (respiratory) expiratory volume for one
second when measured by spirometry is less than one liter.
(2) The person's arterial oxygen tension (pO2) is less than 60
mm/Hg on room air while the person is at rest.
(d) Any person who is impaired by cardiovascular disease to the
extent that the person's functional limitations are classified in
severity as class III or class IV based upon standards accepted by
the American Heart Association.
295.7. A "disabled veteran" is any person who, as a result of
injury or disease suffered while on active service with the armed
forces of the United States, suffers any of the following:
(a) Has a disability which has been rated at 100 percent by the
Department of Veterans Affairs or the military service from which the
veteran was discharged, due to a diagnosed disease or disorder which
substantially impairs or interferes with mobility.
(b) Is so severely disabled as to be unable to move without the
aid of an assistant device.
(c) Has lost, or has lost use of, one or more limbs.
(d) Has suffered permanent blindness, as defined in Section 19153
of the Welfare and Institutions Code.
296. A "distributor" is any person other than a manufacturer who
sells or distributes new vehicles subject to registration under this
code, new trailers subject to identification pursuant to Section
5014.1, or new off-highway motorcycles subject to identification
under this code, to dealers in this state and maintains
representatives for the purpose of contacting dealers or prospective
dealers in this state.
297. A "distributor branch" is an office maintained by a
distributor for the sale of new vehicles or new trailers subject to
identification pursuant to Section 5014.1 to dealers or for directing
or supervising, in whole or in part, the distributor's
representatives.
300. A "drawbar" is a rigid structure forming a connection between
a trailer and a towing vehicle, securely attached to both vehicles by
nonrigid means and carrying no part of the load of either vehicle.
303. A "driveaway-towaway operation" is any operation in which any
motor vehicle or combination of motor vehicles coupled together
constitutes the commodity being transported, when one or more sets of
wheels of any such motor vehicle or motor vehicles are on the
roadway, and when one or more of such vehicles are being operated
under a manufacturer's, dealer's, or transporter's special plates.
305. A "driver" is a person who drives or is in actual physical
control of a vehicle. The term "driver" does not include the
tillerman or other person who, in an auxiliary capacity, assists the
driver in the steering or operation of any articulated firefighting
apparatus.
310. A "driver's license" is a valid license to drive the type of
motor vehicle or combination of vehicles for which a person is
licensed under this code or by a foreign jurisdiction.
310.4. A "driving instructor" is, except as provided in Section
11105.5, an employee of a driving school licensed by the department
to instruct others in the operation of motor vehicles.
310.6. A "driving school" is a business which, for compensation,
conducts or offers to conduct instruction in the operation of motor
vehicles. As used in this section, "instruction" includes classroom
driver education, in-vehicle driver training, and correspondence
study.
310.8. A "driving school operator" is either a driving school owner
who operates his own driving school or an employee of a driving
school who is designated by the driving school owner of such school
to personally direct and manage the school for the owner.
311. A "driving school owner" is any person licensed by the
department to engage in the business of giving instruction for
compensation in the driving of motor vehicles or in the preparation
of an applicant for examination for a driver's license issued by the
department.
312. The term "drug" means any substance or combination of
substances, other than alcohol, which could so affect the nervous
system, brain, or muscles of a person as to impair, to an appreciable
degree, his ability to drive a vehicle in the manner that an
ordinarily prudent and cautious man, in full possession of his
faculties, using reasonable care, would drive a similar vehicle under
like conditions.
313. (a) The term "electric personal assistive mobility device" or
"EPAMD" means a self-balancing, nontandem two-wheeled device, that
can turn in place, designed to transport only one person, with an
electric propulsion system averaging less than 750 watts (1
horsepower), the maximum speed of which, when powered solely by a
propulsion system on a paved level surface, is less than 12.5 miles
per hour.
(b) This section shall become operative on March 1, 2003, and
remain in effect only until January 1, 2008, and as of that date is
repealed, unless a later enacted statute, that is enacted before
January 1, 2008, deletes or extends that date.
315. "Essential parts" are all integral and body parts of a vehicle
of a type required to be registered under this code, the removal,
alteration, or substitution of which would tend to conceal the
identity of the vehicle or substantially alter its appearance.
320. "Established place of business" is a place actually occupied
either continuously or at regular periods by any of the following:
(a) A dealer, remanufacturer, remanufacturer branch, manufacturer,
manufacturer branch, distributor, distributor branch, automobile
driving school, or traffic violator school where the books and
records pertinent to the type of business being conducted are kept.
(b) An automobile dismantler where the books and records pertinent
to the type of business being conducted are kept. A place of
business of an automobile dismantler which qualified as an
"established place of business" before September 17, 1970, is an
"established place of business" as defined in this section.
(c) A registration service where the books and records pertinent
to the type of business being conducted are kept.
320.5. An "extralegal load" is a single unit or an assembled item
which, due to its design, cannot be reasonably reduced or dismantled
in size or weight so that it can be legally transported as a load
without a permit as required by Section 35780. This section does not
apply to loads on passenger cars.
321. "Factory-built housing" is a structure as defined in Section
19971 of the Health and Safety Code. As used in this code,
factory-built housing is a trailer coach which is in excess of eight
feet in width or in excess of 40 feet in length.
322. (a) A "farm labor vehicle" is any motor vehicle designed,
used, or maintained for the transportation of nine or more
farmworkers, in addition to the driver, to or from a place of
employment or employment-related activities.
(b) For the purpose of this section, a farmworker is any person
engaged in rendering personal services for hire and compensation in
connection with the production or harvesting of any farm products.
(c) "Farm labor vehicle" does not include:
(1) Any vehicle carrying only members of the immediate family of
the owner or driver thereof.
(2) Any vehicle while being operated under specific authority
granted by the Public Utilities Commission or under specific
authority granted to a transit system by an authorized city or county
agency.
324. A "fifth-wheel travel trailer" is a vehicle designed for
recreational purposes to carry persons or property on its own
structure and so constructed as to be drawn by a motor vehicle by
means of a kingpin connecting device.
324.5. A "former prisoner of war" is any person who, while serving
as a member of the United States Armed Forces, as a member of the
Philippine Commonwealth Armed Forces, as a part of a United States
Expeditionary Force, or as a United States civilian, was held as a
prisoner of war by forces hostile to the United States during any
armed conflict and is currently a resident of California.
325. A "foreign jurisdiction" is any other state, the District of
Columbia, territories or possessions of the United States, and
foreign states, provinces, or countries.
330. A "foreign vehicle" is a vehicle of a type required to be
registered under this code brought into this State from a foreign
jurisdiction other than in the ordinary course of business, by or
through a manufacturer or dealer and not registered in this State.
331. (a) A "franchise" is a written agreement between two or more
persons having all of the following conditions:
(1) A commercial relationship of definite duration or continuing
indefinite duration.
(2) The franchisee is granted the right to offer for sale or
lease, or to sell or lease at retail new motor vehicles or new
trailers subject to identification pursuant to Section 5014.1
manufactured or distributed by the franchisor or the right to perform
authorized warranty repairs and service, or the right to perform any
combination of these activities.
(3) The franchisee constitutes a component of the franchisor's
distribution system.
(4) The operation of the franchisee's business is substantially
associated with the franchisor's trademark, trade name, advertising,
or other commercial symbol designating the franchisor.
(5) The operation of a portion of the franchisee's business is
substantially reliant on the franchisor for a continued supply of new
vehicles, parts, or accessories.
(b) The term "franchise" does not include an agreement entered
into by a manufacturer or distributor and a person where all the
following apply:
(1) The person is authorized to perform warranty repairs and
service on vehicles manufactured or distributed by the manufacturer
or distributor.
(2) The person is not a new motor vehicle dealer franchisee of the
manufacturer or distributor.
(3) The person's repair and service facility is not located within
the relevant market area of a new motor vehicle dealer franchisee of
the manufacturer or distributor.
331.1. A "franchisee" is any person who, pursuant to a franchise,
receives new motor vehicles subject to registration under this code,
new off-highway motorcycles, as defined in Section 436, or new
trailers subject to identification pursuant to Section 5014.1 from
the franchisor and who offers for sale or lease, or sells or leases
the vehicles at retail or is granted the right to perform authorized
warranty repairs and service, or the right to perform any combination
of these activities.
331.2. A "franchisor" is any person who manufactures, assembles, or
distributes new motor vehicles subject to registration under this
code, new off-highway motorcycles, as defined in Section 436, or new
trailers subject to identification pursuant to Section 5014.1 and who
grants a franchise.
332. "Freeway" is a highway in respect to which the owners of
abutting lands have no right or easement of access to or from their
abutting lands or in respect to which such owners have only limited
or restricted right or easement of access.
335. A "gantry truck" is a motor vehicle so designed and
constructed that it straddles the load to be transported and by means
of appropriate mechanism picks up the load and supports it during
transportation.
336. "General public paratransit vehicle" means any motor vehicle
designed for carrying no more than 24 persons and the driver, that
provides local transportation to the general public, including
transportation of pupils at or below the 12th-grade level to or from
a public or private school or school activity, under the exclusive
jurisdiction of a publicly owned and operated transit system through
one of the following modes: dial-a-ride, subscription service, or
route-deviated bus service. Vehicles used in the exclusive
transportation of disabled persons as defined in Section 99206.5 of
the Public Utilities Code, or of persons 55 years of age or older,
including any persons necessary to provide assistance to these
passengers, are not general public paratransit vehicles.
However, transportation of attendants, companions, or both
traveling together with those individuals with disabilities who are
determined to be eligible for complementary paratransit services in
accordance with Title II of the Americans with Disabilities Act of
1990 (Public Law 101-336) and federal regulations adopted pursuant
thereto, shall not be sufficient to qualify a vehicle as a general
public paratransit vehicle.
A vehicle that provides local transportation for the general
public through one of the following modes: dial-a-ride, subscription
service, or route-deviated bus service, but does not provide
transportation of pupils at or below the 12th-grade level to or from
a public or private school or school activity, is a transit bus, as
defined by Section 642, and is not a general public paratransit
vehicle.
340. A "garage" is a building or other place wherein the business
of storing or safekeeping vehicles of a type required to be
registered under this code and which belong to members of the general
public is conducted for compensation.
345. A "golf cart" is a motor vehicle having not less than three
wheels in contact with the ground, having an unladen weight less than
1,300 pounds, which is designed to be and is operated at not more
than 15 miles per hour and designed to carry golf equipment and not
more than two persons, including the driver.
350. (a) "Gross vehicle weight rating" (GVWR) means the weight
specified by the manufacturer as the loaded weight of a single
vehicle.
(b) Gross combination weight rating (GCWR) means the weight
specified by the manufacturer as the loaded weight of a combination
or articulated vehicle. In the absence of a weight specified by the
manufacturer, GCWR shall be determined by adding the GVWR of the
power unit and the total unladen weight of the towed units and any
load thereon.
353. "Hazardous material" is any substance, material, or device
posing an unreasonable risk to health, safety, or property during
transportation, as defined by regulations adopted pursuant to Section
2402.7. "Hazardous material" includes explosives and hazardous
wastes or substances as defined by regulations adopted pursuant to
Section 25141 of the Health and Safety Code and medical wastes, as
defined in Section 117690 of the Health and Safety Code.
360. "Highway" is a way or place of whatever nature, publicly
maintained and open to the use of the public for purposes of
vehicular travel. Highway includes street.
362. A "house car" is a motor vehicle originally designed, or
permanently altered, and equipped for human habitation, or to which a
camper has been permanently attached. A motor vehicle to which a
camper has been temporarily attached is not a house car except that,
for the purposes of Division 11 (commencing with Section 21000) and
Division 12 (commencing with Section 24000), a motor vehicle equipped
with a camper having an axle that is designed to support a portion
of the weight of the camper unit shall be considered a three-axle
house car regardless of the method of attachment or manner of
registration. A house car shall not be deemed to be a motortruck.
365. An "intersection" is the area embraced within the prolongation
of the lateral curb lines, or, if none, then the lateral boundary
lines of the roadways, of two highways which join one another at
approximately right angles or the area within which vehicles
traveling upon different highways joining at any other angle may come
in conflict.
370. A "legal owner" is a person holding a security interest in a
vehicle which is subject to the provisions of the Uniform Commercial
Code, or the lessor of a vehicle to the State or to any county, city,
district, or political subdivision of the State, or to the United
States, under a lease, lease-sale, or rental-purchase agreement which
grants possession of the vehicle to the lessee for a period of 30
consecutive days or more.
371. Lessee includes "bailee" and is a person who leases, offers to
lease, or is offered the lease of a motor vehicle for a term
exceeding four months.
372. A "lessor" is a person who, for a term exceeding four months,
leases or offers for lease, negotiates or attempts to negotiate a
lease, or induce any person to lease a motor vehicle; and who
receives or expects to receive a commission, money, brokerage fees,
profit or any other thing of value from the lessee of said vehicle.
"Lessor" includes "bailor" and "lease" includes "bailment."
373. A "lessor-retailer" is a lessor or renter who, except under
the circumstances described in subdivision (a) of Section 286, makes
a retail sale or sales of a previously leased or rented vehicle or
vehicles to other than any of the following:
(a) The lessee of the vehicle, or the person who, for a period of
at least one year, has been designated by the lessee as the driver of
the vehicle covered by a written lease agreement.
(b) A buyer for agricultural, business, or commercial purposes.
(c) A government or governmental agency or instrumentality.
375. "Lighting equipment" is any of the following lamps or devices:
(a) Any headlamp, auxiliary driving, passing, or fog lamp, fog
taillamp, taillamp, stoplamp, supplemental stoplamp, license plate
lamp, clearance lamp, side marker lamp, signal lamp or device,
supplemental signal lamp, deceleration signal device, cornering lamp,
running lamp, red, blue, amber, or white warning lamp, flashing red
schoolbus lamp, side-mounted turn signal lamp, and schoolbus side
lamp.
(b) Any operating unit or canceling mechanism for turn signal
lamps or for the simultaneous flashing of turn signal lamps as
vehicular hazard signals, and any advance stoplamp switch.
(c) Any flasher mechanism for turn signals, red schoolbus lamps,
warning lamps, the simultaneous flashing of turn signal lamps as
vehicular hazard signals, and the headlamp flashing systems for
emergency vehicles.
(d) Any equipment regulating the light emitted from any lamp or
device or the light sources therein.
(e) Any reflector, including reflectors for use on bicycles, and
reflectors used for required warning devices.
377. A "limit line" is a solid white line not less than 12 nor more
than 24 inches wide, extending across a roadway or any portion
thereof to indicate the point at which traffic is required to stop in
compliance with legal requirements.
378. A "logging dolly" is a vehicle designed for carrying logs,
having one or more axles which axles, if there be more than one, are
not more than 54 inches apart, and used in connection with a motor
truck solely for the purpose of transporting logs and securely
connected with the towing vehicle both by a reach and by the load.
379. A "logging vehicle" is a vehicle used exclusively in the
conduct of logging operations and not designed for the transportation
of persons or property on a highway.
380. "Liquefied petroleum gas" means normal butane, isobutane,
propane, or butylene (including isomers) or mixtures composed
predominantly thereof in liquid or gaseous state having a vapor
pressure in excess of 40 pounds per square inch absolute at a
temperature of 100 degrees Fahrenheit.
385. "Local authorities" means the legislative body of every county
or municipality having authority to adopt local police regulations.
385.5. A "low-speed vehicle" is a motor vehicle, other than a motor
truck, having four wheels on the ground and an unladen weight of
1,800 pounds or less, that is capable of propelling itself at a
minimum speed of 20 miles per hour and a maximum speed of 25 miles
per hour, on a paved level surface. For the purposes of this
section, a "low-speed vehicle" is not a golf cart, except when
operated pursuant to Section 21115 or 21115.1.
386. A "managerial employee" is a person who exercises control over
a business licensed under this code, whether compensated by salary
or commission, including, but not limited to, any person who is
employed as a general manager, business manager, assistant general
manager, finance and insurance manager, advertising manager, or sales
manager.
387. "Manufactured home" is a manufactured home, as defined in
Section 18007 of the Health and Safety Code, a commercial coach, as
defined in Section 18001. 8 of the Health and Safety Code, a
mobilehome, as defined in Section 18008 of the Health and Safety
Code, factory-built housing, as defined in Section 18971 of the
Health and Safety Code, and a trailer coach which is in excess of 102
inches in width, or in excess of 40 feet in overall length measured
from the foremost point of the trailer hitch to the rear extremity of
the trailer. Manufactured home does not include a recreational
vehicle, as defined in Section 18010 of the Health and Safety Code.
389. A "manufacturer branch" is an office maintained by a
manufacturer for the sale of new vehicles to dealers or for directing
or supervising in whole or in part the manufacturer's
representatives.
395. A "metal tire" is a tire the surface of which in contact with
the highway is wholly or partly of metal or other hard nonresilient
material.
396. "Mobilehome" is a structure as defined in Section 18008 of the
Health and Safety Code. For the purposes of enforcement of highway
safety laws and regulations, a mobilehome is a trailer coach which
is in excess of 102 inches in width, or in excess of 40 feet in
overall length measured from the foremost point of the trailer hitch
to the rear extremity of the trailer.
400. (a) A "motorcycle" is any motor vehicle having a seat or
saddle for the use of the rider, designed to travel on not more than
three wheels in contact with the ground, and weighing less than 1,500
pounds.
(b) A motor vehicle that has four wheels in contact with the
ground, two of which are a functional part of a sidecar, is a
motorcycle if the vehicle otherwise comes within the definition of
subdivision (a).
(c) A motor vehicle that is electrically powered, has a maximum
speed of 45 miles per hour, and weighs less than 2,500 pounds, is a
motorcycle if the vehicle otherwise comes within the definition of
subdivision (a).
(d) A farm tractor is not a motorcycle.
(e) A three-wheeled motor vehicle that otherwise meets the
requirements of subdivision (a), has a partially or completely
enclosed seating area for the driver and passenger, is used by local
public agencies for the enforcement of parking control provisions,
and is operated at slow speeds on public streets, is not a
motorcycle. However, a motor vehicle described in this subdivision
shall comply with the applicable sections of this code imposing
equipment installation requirements on motorcycles.
405. A "motor-driven cycle" is any motorcycle with a motor that
displaces less than 150 cubic centimeters. A motor-driven cycle does
not include a motorized bicycle, as defined in Section 406.
406. (a) A "motorized bicycle" or "moped" is any two-wheeled or
three-wheeled device having fully operative pedals for propulsion by
human power, or having no pedals if powered solely by electrical
energy, and an automatic transmission and a motor which produces less
than 2 gross brake horsepower and is capable of propelling the
device at a maximum speed of not more than 30 miles per hour on level
ground.
(b) A "motorized bicycle" is also a device that has fully
operative pedals for propulsion by human power and has an electric
motor that meets all of the following requirements:
(1) Has a power output of not more than 1,000 watts.
(2) Is incapable of propelling the device at a speed of more than
20 miles per hour on ground level.
(3) Is incapable of further increasing the speed of the device
when human power is used to propel the motorized bicycle faster than
20 miles per hour.
(4) Every manufacturer of motorized bicycles, as defined in this
subdivision, shall provide a disclosure to buyers that advises buyers
that their existing insurance policies may not provide coverage for
these bicycles and that they should contact their insurance company
or insurance agent to determine if coverage is provided.
(c) The disclosure required under paragraph (4) of subdivision (b)
shall meet both of the following requirements:
(1) The disclosure shall be printed in not less than 14-point
boldface type on a single sheet of paper that contains no information
other than the disclosure.
(2) The disclosure shall include the following language in capital
letters:
"YOUR INSURANCE POLICIES MAY NOT PROVIDE COVERAGE FOR ACCIDENTS
INVOLVING THE USE OF THIS BICYCLE. TO DETERMINE IF COVERAGE IS
PROVIDED YOU SHOULD CONTACT YOUR INSURANCE COMPANY OR AGENT."
407. A "motorized quadricycle" is a four-wheeled device, and a
"motorized tricycle" is a three-wheeled device, designed to carry not
more than two persons, including the driver, and having either an
electric motor or a motor with an automatic transmission developing
less than two gross brake horsepower and capable of propelling the
device at a maximum speed of not more than 30 miles per hour on level
ground. The device shall be utilized only by a person who by reason
of physical disability is otherwise unable to move about as a
pedestrian or by a senior citizen as defined in Section 13000.
407.5. (a) A "motorized scooter" is any two-wheeled device that has
handlebars, is designed to be stood or sat upon by the operator, and
is powered by an electric motor that is capable of propelling the
device with or without human propulsion. For purposes of this
section, a motorcycle, as defined in Section 400, a motor-driven
cycle, as defined in Section 405, a motorized bicycle or moped, as
defined in Section 406, or a toy, as defined in Section 108550 of the
Health and Safety Code, is not a motorized scooter.
(b) A device meeting the definition in subdivision (a) that is
powered by a source other than electrical power is also a motorized
scooter.
(c) (1) Every manufacturer of motorized scooters shall provide a
disclosure to buyers that advises buyers that their existing
insurance policies may not provide coverage for these scooters and
that they should contact their insurance company or insurance agent
to determine if coverage is provided.
(2) The disclosure required under paragraph (1) shall meet both of
the following requirements:
(A) The disclosure shall be printed in not less than 14-point
boldface type on a single sheet of paper that contains no information
other than the disclosure.
(B) The disclosure shall include the following language in capital
letters:
"YOUR INSURANCE POLICIES MAY NOT PROVIDE COVERAGE FOR ACCIDENTS
INVOLVING THE USE OF THIS SCOOTER. TO DETERMINE IF COVERAGE IS
PROVIDED, YOU SHOULD CONTACT YOUR INSURANCE COMPANY OR AGENT."
407.5. (a) A "motorized scooter" is any two-wheeled device that has
handlebars, is designed to be stood or sat upon by the operator, and
is powered by an electric motor that is capable of propelling the
device with or without human propulsion. For purposes of this
section, an electric personal assistive mobility device, as defined
in Section 313, a motorcycle, as defined in Section 400, a
motor-driven cycle, as defined in Section 405, a motorized bicycle or
moped, as defined in Section 406, or a toy, as defined in Section
108550 of the Health and Safety Code, is not a motorized scooter.
(b) A device meeting the definition in subdivision (a) that is
powered by a source other than electrical power is also a motorized
scooter.
(c) (1) Every manufacturer of motorized scooters shall provide a
disclosure to buyers that advises buyers that their existing
insurance policies may not provide coverage for these scooters and
that they should contact their insurance company or insurance agent
to determine if coverage is provided.
(2) The disclosure required under paragraph (1) shall meet both of
the following requirements:
(A) The disclosure shall be printed in not less than 14-point
boldface type on a single sheet of paper that contains no information
other than the disclosure.
(B) The disclosure shall include the following language in capital
letters:
"YOUR INSURANCE POLICIES MAY NOT PROVIDE COVERAGE FOR ACCIDENTS
INVOLVING THE USE OF THIS SCOOTER. TO DETERMINE IF COVERAGE IS
PROVIDED, YOU SHOULD CONTACT YOUR INSURANCE COMPANY OR AGENT."
(d) The amendments made by this section shall become operative on
March 1, 2003, and this section shall remain in effect only until
January 1, 2008, and as of that date is repealed, unless a later
enacted statute, that is enacted before January 1, 2008, deletes or
extends that date.
407.5. (a) A "motorized scooter" is any two-wheeled device that has
handlebars, is designed to be stood or sat upon by the operator, and
is powered by an electric motor that is capable of propelling the
device with or without human propulsion. For purposes of this
section, a motorcycle, as defined in Section 400, a motor-driven
cycle, as defined in Section 405, a motorized bicycle or moped, as
defined in Section 406, or a toy, as defined in Section 108550 of the
Health and Safety Code, is not a motorized scooter.
(b) A device meeting the definition in subdivision (a) that is
powered by a source other than electrical power is also a motorized
scooter.
(c) (1) Every manufacturer of motorized scooters shall provide a
disclosure to buyers that advises buyers that their existing
insurance policies may not provide coverage for these scooters and
that they should contact their insurance company or insurance agent
to determine if coverage is provided.
(2) The disclosure required under paragraph (1) shall meet both of
the following requirements:
(A) The disclosure shall be printed in not less than 14-point
boldface type on a single sheet of paper that contains no information
other than the disclosure.
(B) The disclosure shall include the following language in capital
letters:
"YOUR INSURANCE POLICIES MAY NOT PROVIDE COVERAGE FOR ACCIDENTS
INVOLVING THE USE OF THIS SCOOTER. TO DETERMINE IF COVERAGE IS
PROVIDED, YOU SHOULD CONTACT YOUR INSURANCE COMPANY OR AGENT."
(d) This section shall become operative on January 1, 2008.
408. "Motor carrier" is the registered owner, lessee, licensee, or
bailee of any vehicle set forth in Section 34500, who operates or
directs the operation of any such vehicle on either a for-hire or
not-for-hire basis.
410. A "motor truck" or "motortruck" is a motor vehicle designed,
used, or maintained primarily for the transportation of property.
415. (a) A "motor vehicle" is a vehicle that is self-propelled.
(b) "Motor vehicle" does not include a self-propelled wheelchair,
invalid tricycle, or motorized quadricycle when operated by a person
who, by reason of physical disability, is otherwise unable to move
about as a pedestrian.
425. A "muffler" is a device consisting of a series of chambers or
baffle plates, or other mechanical design, for the purpose of
receiving exhaust gas from an internal combustion engine, and
effective in reducing noise.
426. "New motor vehicle dealer" is a dealer, as defined in Section
285, who, in addition to the requirements of that section, either
acquires for resale new and unregistered motor vehicles from
manufacturers or distributors of those motor vehicles or acquires for
resale new and unregistered off-highway motorcycles from
manufacturers or distributors of the vehicles. No distinction shall
be made, nor any different construction be given to the definition of
"new motor vehicle dealer" and "dealer" except for the application
of the provisions of Chapter 6 (commencing with Section 3000) of
Division 2 and Section 11704.5. The provisions of Sections 3001 and
3003 shall not, however, apply to a dealer who deals exclusively in
motorcycles.
430. A "new vehicle" is a vehicle constructed entirely from new
parts that has never been the subject of a retail sale, or registered
with the department, or registered with the appropriate agency or
authority of any other state, District of Columbia, territory or
possession of the United States, or foreign state, province, or
country.
431. A "nonrepairable vehicle" is a vehicle of a type otherwise
subject to registration that meets the criteria specified in
subdivision (a), (b), or (c). The vehicle shall be issued a
nonrepairable vehicle certificate and the vehicle, the vehicle frame,
or unitized frame and body, as applicable, and as defined in Section
670.5, shall not be titled or registered.
(a) A nonrepairable vehicle is a vehicle that has no resale value
except as a source of parts or scrap metal, and which the owner
irreversibly designates solely as a source of parts or scrap metal.
(b) A nonrepairable vehicle is a completely stripped vehicle (a
surgical strip) recovered from theft, missing all of the bolt on
sheet metal body panels, all of the doors and hatches, substantially
all of the interior components, and substantially all of the grill
and light assemblies, or that the owner designates has little or no
resale value other than its worth as a source of scrap metal, or as a
source of a vehicle identification number that could be used
illegally.
(c) A nonrepairable vehicle is a completely burned vehicle (burned
hulk) that has been burned to the extent that there are no more
usable or repairable body or interior components, tires and wheels,
or drive train components, and which the owner irreversibly
designates as having little or no resale value other than its worth
as scrap metal or as a source of a vehicle identification number that
could be used illegally.
432. A "nonrepairable vehicle certificate" is a vehicle ownership
document issued to the owner of a nonrepairable vehicle. Ownership
of the vehicle may only be transferred two times on a nonrepairable
vehicle certificate. A vehicle for which a nonrepairable vehicle
certificate has been issued may not be titled or registered for use
on the roads or highways of California. A nonrepairable vehicle
certificate shall be conspicuously labeled with the word
"nonrepairable" across the front.
435. "Nonresident" is a person who is not a resident of this State.
435.5. "Nonresident daily commuter" means a person who is not a
resident of this state, but who enters and leaves this state on a
daily basis for the purpose of employment and whose vehicle is
principally garaged out of this state.
436. An "off-highway motorcycle" means a motorcycle or motor-driven
cycle which is subject to identification under this code.
440. An "official traffic control device" is any sign, signal,
marking, or device, consistent with Section 21400, placed or erected
by authority of a public body or official having jurisdiction, for
the purpose of regulating, warning, or guiding traffic, but does not
include islands, curbs, traffic barriers, speed humps, speed bumps,
or other roadway design features.
445. An "official traffic control signal" is any device, whether
manually, electrically or mechanically operated, by which traffic is
alternately directed to stop and proceed and which is erected by
authority of a public body or official having jurisdiction.
450. An "oil well production service unit" is any vehicle
specifically designed for and used exclusively in servicing oil wells
which is only incidentally operated or moved on a highway.
455. "Original driver's license" means the first driver's license
issued a person under this code.
460. An "owner" is a person having all the incidents of ownership,
including the legal title of a vehicle whether or not such person
lends, rents, or creates a security interest in the vehicle; the
person entitled to the possession of a vehicle as the purchaser under
a security agreement; or the State, or any county, city, district,
or political subdivision of the State, or the United States, when
entitled to the possession and use of a vehicle under a lease,
lease-sale, or rental-purchase agreement for a period of 30
consecutive days or more.
461. The Senate, Assembly, or any committees thereof, or the
Governor's office in possession and using vehicles under a lease,
lease-sale, or rental-purchase agreement for a period of 30
consecutive days or more, unless otherwise provided in the lease or
rental agreement, shall be exempt from the provisions of Section 460,
upon the giving of written notice to the department of the desire to
be so exempt.
462. A "paratransit vehicle" is a passenger vehicle, other than a
bus, schoolbus, school pupil activity bus, youth bus, general public
paratransit vehicle, or taxicab that is both of the following:
(a) (1) Operated for hire by a business, nonprofit organization,
or the state, or a political subdivision of the state utilizing
drivers who receive compensation for their services and who spend a
majority of their workweek operating a passenger vehicle.
(2) For the purposes of this subdivision, compensation does not
include reimbursement to volunteer drivers of the cost of providing
transportation services at a rate not greater than that approved by
the United States Internal Revenue Service for volunteers.
(3) For the purposes of this subdivision, "for hire" means that
the entity providing transportation services is compensated for the
transportation under contract or agreement.
(b) Regularly used to provide transportation services to any of
the following:
(1) Handicapped persons, as defined in Section 99206.5 of the
Public Utilities Code.
(2) Persons with a developmental disability, as defined in
subdivision (a) of Section 4512 of the Welfare and Institutions Code.
(3) Individuals with disabilities who are determined to be
eligible for complementary paratransit services under Title II of the
Americans with Disabilities Act of 1990 (P.L. 101-336).
(4) Persons who are 55 years of age or older.
463. "Park or parking" shall mean the standing of a vehicle,
whether occupied or not, otherwise than temporarily for the purpose
of and while actually engaged in loading or unloading merchandise or
passengers.
464. A "passenger transportation vehicle" is any vehicle, including
a trailer bus, designed, used, or maintained for carrying more than
10 persons including the driver, which requires the person to have in
his or her immediate possession a valid driver's license for the
appropriate class of vehicle to be driven endorsed for passenger
transportation.
465. A "passenger vehicle" is any motor vehicle, other than a
motortruck, truck tractor, or a bus, as defined in Section 233, and
used or maintained for the transportation of persons. The term
"passenger vehicle" shall include a housecar.
467. (a) A "pedestrian" is any person who is afoot or who is using
a means of conveyance propelled by human power other than a bicycle.
(b) "Pedestrian" includes any person who is operating a
self-propelled wheelchair, invalid tricycle, or motorized quadricycle
and, by reason of physical disability, is otherwise unable to move
about as a pedestrian, as specified in subdivision (a).
467. (a) A "pedestrian" is any person who is afoot or who is using
any of the following:
(1) A means of conveyance propelled by human power other than a
bicycle.
(2) An electric personnel assistive mobility device as defined in
Section 313.
(b) "Pedestrian" includes any person who is operating a
self-propelled wheelchair, invalid tricycle, or motorized quadricycle
and, by reason of physical disability, is otherwise unable to move
about as a pedestrian, as specified in subdivision (a).
(c) The amendments made by this section shall become operative on
March 1, 2003, and this section shall remain in effect only until
January 1, 2008, and as of that date is repealed, unless a later
enacted statute, that is enacted before January 1, 2008, deletes or
extends that date.
467. (a) A "pedestrian" is any person who is afoot or who is using
a means of conveyance propelled by human power other than a bicycle.
(b) "Pedestrian" includes any person who is operating a
self-propelled wheelchair, invalid tricycle, or motorized quadricycle
and, by reason of physical disability, is otherwise unable to move
about as a pedestrian, as specified in subdivision (a).
(c) This section shall become operative on January 1, 2008.
468. The department shall commence the "permanent trailer
identification plate program," on or after December 31, 2001, and may
designate the method, consistent with this code, to be used by
trailers, as defined in Section 5014.1, to receive an assigned
permanent trailer identification plate for all trailers, except for
trailer coaches and park trailers as described in subdivision (b) of
Section 18010 of the Health and Safety Code, for identification
purposes. An auxiliary dolly or tow dolly may be assigned a
permanent trailer identification plate. The plate shall be in a size
and design as determined by the department.
470. "Person" includes a natural person, firm, copartnership,
association, limited liability company, or corporation.
471. A "pickup truck" is a motor truck with a manufacturer's gross
vehicle weight rating of less than 11,500 pounds, an unladen weight
of less than 8,001 pounds, and which is equipped with an open
box-type bed not exceeding 9 feet in length. "Pickup truck" does not
include a motor vehicle otherwise meeting the above definition, that
is equipped with a bed-mounted storage compartment unit commonly
called a "utility body."
472. A "pilot car" is a motor vehicle, except a motorcycle,
motorized bicycle, or motorized quadricycle, which is used to escort
one or more other vehicles, when required, due to the vehicles' size
or character of load, in accordance with conditions set forth in a
permit issued by the appropriate state agency or by a local
authority.
475. A "pole or pipe dolly" is a vehicle, other than a motor
vehicle, having one or more axles which axles, if there be more than
one, are not more than 54 inches apart, and two or more wheels, used
in connection with a motor vehicle solely for the purpose of
transporting poles, timbers, pipes, or integral structural materials
and connected with the towing vehicle both by chain, rope, cable, or
drawbar, and by the load, without any part of the weight of the dolly
resting upon the towing vehicle.
480. A "power brake" is any breaking gear or mechanism that aids in
applying the brakes of a vehicle and which utilizes vacuum,
compressed air, electricity, or hydraulic pressure developed by the
motive power of that vehicle for that purpose.
485. A "pneumatic tire" is a tire inflated or capable of inflation
with compressed air.
490. "Private road or driveway" is a way or place in private
ownership and used for vehicular travel by the owner and those having
express or implied permission from the owner but not by other
members of the public.
492. A "private school" is any school, whether conducted for profit
or not, giving a course of training similar to that given in a
public school at or below the twelfth grade, including but not
limited to schools owned or operated by any church.
495. The "reciprocity commission" is the commission empowered to
enter into reciprocity agreements.
505. A "registered owner" is a person registered by the department
as the owner of a vehicle.
505.2. (a) A "registration service" is a person engaged in the
business of soliciting or receiving any application for the
registration, renewal of registration, or transfer of registration or
ownership, of any vehicle of a type subject to registration under
this code, or of transmitting or presenting any of those documents to
the department, when any compensation is solicited or received for
the service. "Registration service" includes, but is not limited to,
a person who, for compensation, processes registration documents,
conducts lien sales, or processes vehicle dismantling documents.
(b) "Registration service" does not include any of the following:
(1) A person performing registration services on a vehicle
acquired by that person for his or her own personal use or for use in
the regular course of that person's business.
(2) A person who solicits applications for or sells, for
compensation, nonresident permits for the operation of vehicles
within this state.
(3) An employee of one or more dealers or dismantlers, or a
combination thereof, who performs registration services for vehicles
acquired by, consigned to, or sold by the employing dealers or
dismantlers.
(4) A motor club, as defined in Section 12142 of the Insurance
Code.
(5) A common carrier acting in the regular course of its business
in transmitting applications.
506. "Registration year" is the period of time beginning with the
date the vehicle is first required to be registered in this state and
ending on the date designated by the director for expiration of the
registration or the period of time designated for subsequent renewal
thereof.
507. The "relevant market area" is any area within a radius of 10
miles from the site of a potential new dealership.
507.5. A "remanufactured vehicle" is a vehicle that has been
constructed by a licensed remanufacturer and consists of any used or
reconditioned integral parts, including, but not limited to, frame,
engine, transmission, axles, brakes, or suspension. Remanufactured
vehicles may be sold under a distinctive trade name. An existing
vehicle which is incidently repaired, restored, or modified by
replacing or adding parts or accessories is not a remanufactured
vehicle.
507.8. A "remanufacturer" is any person who for commission, money,
or other thing of value, produces a vehicle that consists of any used
or reconditioned integral parts, including, but not limited to,
frame, engine, transmission, axles, brakes, or suspension which is
subject to registration under this code. A remanufacturer is not a
person who incidently repairs, restores, or modifies an existing
vehicle by replacing or adding parts or accessories.
508. A "renter" is a person who is engaged in the business of
renting, leasing or bailing vehicles for a term not exceeding four
months and for a fixed rate or price.
510. A "repair shop" is a place where vehicles subject to
registration under this code are repaired, rebuilt, reconditioned,
repainted, or in any way maintained for the public at a charge.
512. A "representative" is any person regularly employed by a
manufacturer or distributor for the purpose of negotiating or
promoting the sale of the manufacturer's or distributer's vehicles to
their franchisees or for regularly supervising or contacting
franchisees or prospective franchisees in this state for any purpose.
515. A "residence district" is that portion of a highway and the
property contiguous thereto, other than a business district, (a) upon
one side of which highway, within a distance of a quarter of a mile,
the contiguous property fronting thereon is occupied by 13 or more
separate dwelling houses or business structures, or (b) upon both
sides of which highway, collectively, within a distance of a quarter
of a mile, the contiguous property fronting thereon is occupied by 16
or more separate dwelling houses or business structures. A
residence district may be longer than one-quarter of a mile if the
above ratio of separate dwelling houses or business structures to the
length of the highway exists.
516. "Resident" means any person who manifests an intent to live or
be located in this state on more than a temporary or transient
basis. Presence in the state for six months or more in any 12-month
period gives rise to a rebuttable presumption of residency.
The following are evidence of residency for purposes of vehicle
registration:
(a) Address where registered to vote.
(b) Location of employment or place of business.
(c) Payment of resident tuition at a public institution of higher
education.
(d) Attendance of dependents at a primary or secondary school.
(e) Filing a homeowner's property tax exemption.
(f) Renting or leasing a home for use as a residence.
(g) Declaration of residency to obtain a license or any other
privilege or benefit not ordinarily extended to a nonresident.
(h) Possession of a California driver's license.
(i) Other acts, occurrences, or events that indicate presence in
the state is more than temporary or transient.
520. A "retail sale" is a sale of goods to a person for the purpose
of consumption and use, and not for resale to others, including, but
not limited to, an arrangement where a motor vehicle is consigned to
a dealer for sale.
521. A "retarder" is a device, other than a brake, which, when
activated by the driver, applies a retarding force to the wheels of a
vehicle without the use of friction. A retarder may be installed in
or on the engine, exhaust system, drive train, or wheels of a motor
vehicle, or an axle or wheels of a towed vehicle. A retarder may
operate by altering the valve timing of the engine, by controlling
the flow of a circulating fluid, by applying an electromagnetic
force, by controlling the release of gases from the exhaust system,
or by other means. A retarder may or may not be capable of stopping
the vehicle upon which it is installed.
521.5. "Revived salvage vehicle" means a total loss salvage vehicle
as defined in Section 544, or a vehicle reported for dismantling
pursuant to Section 5500 or 11520, that has been rebuilt or restored
to legal operating condition with new or used component parts.
522. "Ridesharing" means two or more persons traveling by any mode,
including, but not limited to, carpooling, vanpooling, buspooling,
taxipooling, jitney, and public transit.
525. "Right-of-way" is the privilege of the immediate use of the
highway.
527. (a) "Road" means any existing vehicle route established before
January 1, 1979, with significant evidence of prior regular travel
by vehicles subject to registration pursuant to Article 1 (commencing
with Section 4000) of Chapter 1 of Division 3; provided, that "road"
does not mean any route traversed exclusively by bicycles as defined
in Section 39001, motorcycles as defined in Section 400,
motor-driven cycles as defined in Section 405, or off-highway motor
vehicles as defined in Section 38012.
(b) Even though nature may alter or eliminate portions of an
existing vehicle route, the route shall still be considered a road
where there is evidence of periodic use.
(c) A vehicle route need not necessarily be a publicly or
privately maintained surface to be a road, as defined, for purposes
of this section. Nothing contained herein shall pertain to any
property in an incorporated area or properties held in private
ownership.
(d) This section is definitional only and nothing contained herein
shall be deemed to affect, alter, create, or destroy any right,
title, or interest in real property, including, but not limited to,
any permit, license, or easement; nor shall this chapter be deemed to
affect the liability, or lack thereof, of any owner of an interest
of real property based upon the use, possession, or ownership of such
interest in real property or the entry upon such property by any
person.
(e) This section shall only apply in a county where the board of
supervisors has adopted a resolution or enacted an ordinance
providing for such application.
530. A "roadway" is that portion of a highway improved, designed,
or ordinarily used for vehicular travel.
535. Safety glazing material is any glazing material so
constructed, treated, or combined with other materials as to reduce,
in comparison with ordinary sheet, plate, or floatglass, the
likelihood of injury to persons by glazing material whether it may be
broken or unbroken.
540. A "safety zone" is the area or space lawfully set apart within
a roadway for the exclusive use of pedestrians and which is
protected, or which is marked or indicated by vertical signs, raised
markers or raised buttons, in order to make such area or space
plainly visible at all times while the same is set apart as a safety
zone.
543. "Salvage pool" means a person engaged exclusively in the
business of disposing of total loss salvage vehicles, nonrepairable
vehicles, or recovered stolen vehicles sent to it by, or on behalf
of, insurance companies, authorized adjusters, leasing companies,
self-insured persons, or financial institutions.
543.5. "Salvage vehicle rebuilder" means any person who rebuilds a
total loss salvage vehicle, as defined in Section 544, or a vehicle
reported for dismantling pursuant to Section 11520, for subsequent
resale. A person who, for personal use, rebuilds a total loss
salvage vehicle, or a vehicle reported for dismantling, and registers
that vehicle in his or her name, is not a salvage vehicle rebuilder.
Nothing in this section exempts a salvage vehicle rebuilder from
any applicable licensing requirements under this code.
544. "Total loss salvage vehicle" means a vehicle, other than a
nonrepairable vehicle, of a type subject to registration that has
been wrecked, destroyed, or damaged, to such an extent that the
owner, leasing company, financial institution, or the insurance
company that insured the vehicle, considers it uneconomical to repair
the vehicle and because of this, the vehicle is not repaired by or
for the person who owned the vehicle at the time of the event
resulting in damage.
545. A "schoolbus" is any motor vehicle designed, used, or
maintained for the transportation of any school pupil at or below the
12th-grade level to or from a public or private school or to or from
public or private school activities, except the following:
(a) A motor vehicle of any type carrying only members of the
household of the owner thereof.
(b) A motortruck transporting pupils who are seated only in the
passenger compartment, or a passenger vehicle designed for and
carrying not more than 10 persons, including the driver, unless the
vehicle or truck is transporting two or more handicapped pupils
confined to wheelchairs.
(c) A motor vehicle operated by a common carrier, or by and under
the exclusive jurisdiction of a publicly owned or operated transit
system, only during the time it is on a scheduled run and is
available to the general public, or on a run scheduled in response to
a request from a handicapped pupil confined to a wheelchair, or from
a parent of the handicapped pupil, for transportation to or from
nonschool activities; provided, that the motor vehicle is designed
for and actually carries not more than 16 persons including the
driver, is available to eligible persons of the general public, and
the school does not provide the requested transportation service.
(d) A school pupil activity bus.
(e) A motor vehicle operated by a carrier licensed by the
Interstate Commerce Commission which is transporting pupils on a
school activity entering or returning to the state from another state
or country.
(f) A youth bus.
(g) Notwithstanding any other provisions of this section, the
governing board of a district maintaining a community college may, by
resolution, designate any motor vehicle operated by or for the
district, a schoolbus within the meaning of this section, if it is
primarily used for the transportation of community college students
to or from a public community college or to or from public community
college activities. The designation shall not be effective until
written notification thereof has been filed with the Department of
the California Highway Patrol.
(h) A state-owned motor vehicle being operated by a state employee
upon the driveways, paths, parking facilities, or grounds specified
in Section 21113 that are under the control of a state hospital under
the jurisdiction of the State Department of Developmental Services
where the posted speed limit is not more than 20 miles per hour. The
motor vehicle may also be operated for a distance of not more than
one-quarter mile upon a public street or highway that runs through
the grounds of a state hospital under the jurisdiction of the State
Department of Developmental Services, if the posted speed limit on
the public street or highway is not more than 25 miles per hour and
if all traffic is regulated by posted stop signs or official traffic
control signals at the points of entry and exit by the motor vehicle.
(i) A general public paratransit vehicle as defined in Section
336, provided that the general public paratransit vehicle does not
duplicate existing schoolbus service, does not transport a public
school pupil at or below the 12th grade level to a destination
outside of that pupil's school district, and is not used to transport
public school pupils in areas where schoolbus services were
available during the 1986-87 school year. In areas where expanded
school services require expanded transportation of public school
pupils, as determined by the governing board of a school district,
general public paratransit vehicles shall not be used to transport
those pupils for a period of three years from the date that a need
for expansion is identified. For purposes of this section, a pupil
is defined as a student at or below the 12th grade level who is being
transported to a mandated school activity.
(j) A schoolbus with the flashing red light signal system, the
amber warning system, and the schoolbus signs covered, while being
used for transportation of persons other than pupils, to or from
school or school related activities.
545.1. (a) Notwithstanding Section 545, a motor vehicle is not a
schoolbus if it is operated for the purpose of transporting any pupil
to or from a community college or to or from activities at that
college, irrespective of the age of the pupil or the grade level of
the pupil, if the pupil is a current enrollee in classes of the
college providing the transportation.
(b) A driver of a motor vehicle that meets the criteria
established by subdivision (a) shall escort pupils as required by
subdivision (d) of Section 22112 and shall meet the requirements of
Section 12517.
(c) This section shall apply to a community college district that
includes within its boundaries one or more counties, each of which
has a population of 250,000 or less.
545.5. (a) Notwithstanding Section 545, a bus of the type commonly
known as a coach bus is not a schoolbus when it is operated by the
Trona Unified School District to transport pupils to route-deviated
school activities.
(b) A coach bus operated pursuant to subdivision (a) shall be
inspected annually by the Department of the California Highway
Patrol, shall meet the equipment safety standards established by the
federal government for schoolbuses, and shall be used to transport
pupils only if the driver has obtained a certificate to operate a
schoolbus pursuant to Section 12517.
546. A "school pupil activity bus" is any motor vehicle, other than
a schoolbus, operated by a common carrier, or by and under the
exclusive jurisdiction of a publicly owned or operated transit
system, or by a passenger charter-party carrier, used under a
contractual agreement between a school and carrier to transport
school pupils at or below the 12th-grade level to or from a public or
private school activity, or used to transport pupils to or from
residential schools, when the pupils are received and discharged at
off-highway locations where a parent or adult designated by the
parent is present to accept the pupil or place the pupil on the bus.
As used in this section, common carrier, publicly owned or operated
transit system, and passenger charter-party carrier refer to carriers
in business for the principal purpose of transporting members of the
public on a commercial basis. This section shall not apply to a
motor vehicle operated by a carrier licensed by the Interstate
Commerce Commission that is transporting pupils on a school activity
trip entering or returning to the state from another state or
country.
The driver of a school pupil activity bus shall be subject to the
regulations adopted by the California Highway Patrol governing
schoolbus drivers, except that the regulations shall not require
drivers to duplicate training or schooling that they have otherwise
received which is equivalent to that required pursuant to the
regulations, and the regulations shall not require drivers to take
training in first aid. However, a valid certificate to drive a
school pupil activity bus shall not entitle the bearer to drive a
schoolbus.
550. A "semitrailer" is a vehicle designed for carrying persons or
property, used in conjunction with a motor vehicle, and so
constructed that some part of its weight and that of its load rests
upon, or is carried by, another vehicle.
555. "Sidewalk" is that portion of a highway, other than the
roadway, set apart by curbs, barriers, markings or other delineation
for pedestrian travel.
557. A "snowmobile" is a motor vehicle designed to travel over ice
or snow in whole or in part on skis, belts, or cleats, which is
commonly referred to as an Over Snow Vehicle (OSV).
558. A "snow-tread tire" is a tire which has a relatively deep and
aggressive tread pattern compared with conventional passenger tread
pattern.
560. A "solid tire" is a tire of rubber or other resilient material
which does not depend upon compressed air for the support of the
load.
565. "Special construction equipment" is:
(a) Any vehicle used primarily off the highways for construction
purposes and which moves only occasionally over the highways and
which because of the length, height, width, or unladen weight may not
move over the public highways unladen without the permit specified
in Section 35780.
(b) Any vehicle which is designed and used primarily either for
grading of highways, paving of highways, earth moving, and other
construction work on highways, or for construction or maintenance
work on railroad rights-of-way, and which is not designed or used
primarily for the transportation of persons or property and which is
only incidentally operated or moved over the highway. It includes,
but is not limited to, road and railroad construction and maintenance
machinery so designed and used such as portable air compressors, air
drills, asphalt spreaders, bituminous mixers, bucket loaders,
tracktype tractors, crawler tractors, ditchers, leveling graders,
finishing machines, motor graders, paving mixers, road rollers,
scarifiers, earth moving scrapers and carryalls, lighting plants,
welders, pumps, water wagons, power shovels and draglines, speed
swings, skip loaders, weed mowers, self-propelled and tractor-drawn
earth moving equipment and machinery, including dump trucks and
tractor-dump trailer combinations which either (1) are in excess of
96 inches in width or (2) which, because of their length, height or
unladen weight, may not be moved on a public highway without the
permit specified in Section 35780 of this code and which are not
operated laden except within the boundaries of the job construction
site, and other similar types of construction equipment.
570. "Special construction equipment" does not include any of the
following:
(a) A vehicle originally designed for the transportation of
persons or property to which machinery has been attached unless
specifically designated as such in Section 565.
(b) Dump trucks originally designed to comply with the size and
weight provisions of this code notwithstanding any subsequent
modification which would require a permit, as specified in Section
35780 of this code, to operate such vehicles on a highway,
truck-mounted transit mixers, cranes and shovels.
575. "Special mobile equipment" is a vehicle, not self-propelled,
not designed or used primarily for the transportation of persons or
property, and only incidentally operated or moved over a highway,
excepting implements of husbandry.
580. A "specially constructed vehicle" is a vehicle which is built
for private use, not for resale, and is not constructed by a licensed
manufacturer or remanufacturer. A specially constructed vehicle may
be built from (1) a kit; (2) new or used, or a combination of new
and used, parts; or (3) a vehicle reported for dismantling, as
required by Section 5500 or 11520, which, when reconstructed, does
not resemble the original make of the vehicle dismantled. A
specially constructed vehicle is not a vehicle which has been
repaired or restored to its original design by replacing parts.
585. A "station wagon" is a dual purpose vehicle designed for the
transportation of persons and also designed in such a manner that the
seats may be removed or folded out of the way for the purpose of
increasing the property carrying space within the vehicle. The term
includes, but is not limited to, types of vehicles which carry the
trade names of station wagon, estate wagon, town and country wagon,
and country sedan.
587. "Stop or stopping" when prohibited shall mean any cessation of
movement of a vehicle, whether occupied or not, except when
necessary to avoid conflict with other traffic or in compliance with
the direction of a police officer or official traffic control device
or signal.
590. "Street" is a way or place of whatever nature, publicly
maintained and open to the use of the public for purposes of
vehicular travel. Street includes highway.
591. A "street" or "highway" shall not include those portions of a
way or place in or upon which construction, alteration, or repair
work is being performed insofar as the equipment performing such work
and its operation are concerned. Where the work consists of a
street or highway project, the limits of the project as shown or
described in the plans or specifications of the awarding body shall
be so excluded with reference to the equipment actually engaged in
performing the work. The authority having jurisdiction over such way
or place may include any or all of the requirements set forth in
Divisions 11, 12, 13, 14 and 15 in any permit issued for work on such
way or place and the awarding body on any such street or highway
project may include such requirements in the specifications for such
project. It is the intention of the Legislature, in enacting this
section, that this section shall not be construed to relieve any
person from the duty of exercising due care.
592. "Highway", for the purposes of Division 3 (commencing with
Section 4000), Division 12 (commencing with Section 24000), Division
13 (commencing with Section 29000), Division 14.8 (commencing with
Section 34500), and Division 15 (commencing with Section 35000), does
not include a way or place under the jurisdiction of a federal
governmental agency, which lies on national forest or private lands,
is open to public use, and for which the cost of maintenance of such
way or place is borne or contributed to directly by any users
thereof.
593. "Supplemental restraint system" means an automatic passive
restraint system consisting of a bag that is designed to inflate upon
collision, commonly referred to as an "airbag."
595. "Terminal" is a place where a vehicle of a type listed in
Section 34500 is regularly garaged or maintained, or from which the
vehicle is operated or dispatched.
600. A "through highway" is a highway or portion thereof at the
entrance to which vehicular traffic from intersecting highways is
regulated by stop signs or traffic control signals or is controlled
when entering on a separated right-turn roadway by a
yield-right-of-way sign.
605. "Tire traction devices" are devices or mechanisms having a
composition and design capable of improving vehicle traction,
braking, and cornering ability upon snow or ice-covered surfaces.
Tire traction devices shall be constructed and assembled to provide
sufficient structural integrity and to prevent accidental detachment
from vehicles. Tire traction devices shall, at the time of
manufacture or final assembly, bear a permanent impression indicating
the name, initials, or trademark of the assembling company or
primary manufacturer, and the country in which the devices were
manufactured or assembled in final form.
610. "Tire tread" is that portion of the tire, consisting of the
ribs and grooves, which comes in contact with the roadway.
611. A "toll highway" or "toll road" is a publicly owned way or
place open to the use of the public for purposes of vehicular travel
which use requires the payment of a fee.
612. "Tour bus" means a bus designed for carrying more than 16
passengers and the driver which is operated by or for a charter-party
carrier of passengers, as defined in Section 5360 of the Public
Utilities Code.
612. "Tour bus" means a bus, which is operated by or for a
charter-party carrier of passengers, as defined in Section 5360 of
the Public Utilities Code, or a passenger stage corporation, as
defined in Section 226 of the Public Utilities Code, or any highway
carrier of passengers required to register with the California Public
Utilities Commission pursuant to Section 3910 of the Public
Utilities Code.
615. (a) A "tow truck" is a motor vehicle which has been altered or
designed and equipped for, and primarily used in the business of,
transporting vehicles by means of a crane, hoist, tow bar, tow line,
or dolly or is otherwise primarily used to render assistance to other
vehicles. A "roll-back carrier" designed to carry up to two
vehicles is also a tow truck. A trailer for hire that is being used
to transport a vehicle is a tow truck. "Tow truck" does not include
an automobile dismantlers' tow vehicle or a repossessor's tow
vehicle.
(b) "Repossessor's tow vehicle" means a tow vehicle which is
registered to a repossessor licensed or registered pursuant to
Chapter 11 (commencing with Section 7500) of Division 3 of the
Business and Professions Code that is used exclusively in the course
of the repossession business.
(c) "Automobile dismantlers' tow vehicle" means a tow vehicle
which is registered by an automobile dismantler licensed pursuant to
Chapter 3 (commencing with Section 11500) of Division 5 and which is
used exclusively to tow vehicles owned by that automobile dismantler
in the course of the automobile dismantling business.
617. A "tow dolly" is a vehicle towed by a motor vehicle and
designed and used exclusively to transport another motor vehicle and
upon which the front or rear wheels of the towed motor vehicle are
mounted, while the other wheels of the towed motor vehicle remain in
contact with the ground. "Tow dolly" does not include a portable or
collapsible dolly used as specified in Section 4014.
620. The term "traffic" includes pedestrians, ridden animals,
vehicles, street cars, and other conveyances, either singly or
together, while using any highway for purposes of travel.
625. A "traffic officer" is any member of the California Highway
Patrol, or any peace officer who is on duty for the exclusive or main
purpose of enforcing Division 10 (commencing with Section 20000) or
11 (commencing with Section 21000).
626. A "traffic violator school" is a business that, for
compensation, provides, or offers to provide, instruction in traffic
safety, including, but not limited to, classroom traffic violator
curricula, for persons referred by a court pursuant to Section 42005
or to other persons who elect to attend.
626.2. A "traffic violator school branch or classroom location" is
any place where a traffic violator school conducts instruction or
maintains records.
626.4. A "traffic violator school instructor" is any person who
provides instruction to traffic violators on behalf of a traffic
violator school.
626.6. A "traffic violator school operator" is the person who
directs and manages the operations of a traffic violator school.
A "traffic violator school operator" may be either the traffic
violator school owner or another person designated by the traffic
violator school owner to personally direct and manage the traffic
violator school for the traffic violator school owner.
626.8. A "traffic violator school owner" is any natural person,
association, or corporation that owns a traffic violator school.
627. (a) "Engineering and traffic survey," as used in this code,
means a survey of highway and traffic conditions in accordance with
methods determined by the Department of Transportation for use by
state and local authorities.
(b) An engineering and traffic survey shall include, among other
requirements deemed necessary by the department, consideration of all
of the following:
(1) Prevailing speeds as determined by traffic engineering
measurements.
(2) Accident records.
(3) Highway, traffic, and roadside conditions not readily apparent
to the driver.
(c) When conducting an engineering and traffic survey, local
authorities, in addition to the factors set forth in paragraphs (1)
to (3), inclusive, of subdivision (b) may consider all of the
following:
(1) Residential density, if any of the following conditions exist
on the particular portion of highway and the property contiguous
thereto, other than a business district:
(A) Upon one side of the highway, within a distance of a quarter
of a mile, the contiguous property fronting thereon is occupied by 13
or more separate dwelling houses or business structures.
(B) Upon both sides of the highway, collectively, within a
distance of a quarter of a mile, the contiguous property fronting
thereon is occupied by 16 or more separate dwelling houses or
business structures.
(C) The portion of highway is longer than one-quarter of a mile
but has the ratio of separate dwelling houses or business structures
to the length of the highway described in either subparagraph (A) or
(B).
(2) Pedestrian and bicyclist safety.
630. A "trailer" is a vehicle designed for carrying persons or
property on its own structure and for being drawn by a motor vehicle
and so constructed that no part of its weight rests upon any other
vehicle. As used in Division 15 (commencing with Section 35000),
"trailer" includes a semitrailer when used in conjunction with an
auxiliary dolly, if the auxiliary dolly is of a type constructed to
replace the function of the drawbar and the front axle or axles of a
trailer.
635. A "trailer coach" is a vehicle, other than a motor vehicle,
designed for human habitation or human occupancy for industrial,
professional, or commercial purposes, for carrying property on its
own structure, and for being drawn by a motor vehicle. A "park
trailer," as described in Section 18009.3 of the Health and Safety
Code, is a trailer coach.
636. A "trailer bus" is a trailer or semitrailer designed, used,
or maintained for the transportation of more than 15 persons,
including the driver, and includes a connected towing motor vehicle
that is a motor truck, truck tractor, or bus.
640. A "transferee" is a person who has acquired the sole ownership
of or an equity in a vehicle of a type required to be registered
under this code.
642. A "transit bus" is any bus owned or operated by a publicly
owned or operated transit system, or operated under contract with a
publicly owned or operated transit system, and used to provide to the
general public, regularly scheduled transportation for which a fare
is charged. A general public paratransit vehicle is not a transit
bus.
645. (a) A "transporter" is a person engaged in the business of
moving any owned or lawfully possessed vehicle by lawful methods over
the highways for the purpose of delivery of such vehicles to
dealers, sales agents of a manufacturer, purchasers, or to a new
location as requested by the owner.
(b) The term "transporter" does not include a person engaged in
the business of operating a tow car.
650. A "trolley coach" is a vehicle which is propelled by electric
power obtained from overhead trolley wires, but not operated upon
rails.
655. (a) A "truck tractor" is a motor vehicle designed and used
primarily for drawing other vehicles and not so constructed as to
carry a load, other than a part of the weight of the vehicle and the
load so drawn. As used in this section, "load" does not include
items carried on the truck tractor in conjunction with the operation
of the vehicle if the load carrying space for these items does not
exceed 34 square feet.
(b) Notwithstanding subdivision (a), a truck tractor, operated by
a motor carrier whose owner is licensed by the Department of the
California Highway Patrol to transport explosives pursuant to
Division 14 (commencing with Section 31600), may be equipped with a
cargo container used exclusively for the transportation of explosives
or munitions-related security material, as specified by the United
States Department of Defense.
657. A "truss" is an assemblage of beams, bars, or rods typically
arranged in a triangle or combination of triangles to form a rigid
framework and used as a structural support in buildings.
660. The "unladen weight" of a vehicle is the weight equipped and
ready for operation on the road including the body, fenders, oil in
motor, radiator full of water, with five gallons of gasoline or
equivalent weight of other motor fuel; also equipment required by
law, and unless exempted under Section 66l, any special cabinets,
boxes or body parts permanently attached to the vehicle, and any
machinery, equipment or attachment which is attendant to the
efficient operation of the body or vehicle. Unladen weight shall not
include any load or any machinery or mechanical apparatus, such as,
but not limited to, wood saws, well-drilling machines, spray
apparatus, tow truck cranes, and grinding equipment. The unladen
weight of a vehicle shall have no application in determining any fee
under this code or the Revenue and Taxation Code other than Section
9400.
661. Unladen weight shall not include the following machinery,
equipment or attachment which is attendant to the efficient operation
of the body or vehicle:
(a) Equipment used for loading, compacting, or unloading of
refuse.
(b) Transitmix cement equipment.
(c) Temporary equipment used to contain or support the load which
does not change the body classification.
(d) Any camper unit that is temporarily attached to a vehicle.
(e) Refrigeration equipment.
665. A "used vehicle" is a vehicle that has been sold, or has been
registered with the department, or has been sold and operated upon
the highways, or has been registered with the appropriate agency of
authority, of any other state, District of Columbia, territory or
possession of the United States or foreign state, province or
country, or unregistered vehicles regularly used or operated as
demonstrators in the sales work of a dealer or unregistered vehicles
regularly used or operated by a manufacturer in the sales or
distribution work of such manufacturer. The word "sold" does not
include or extend to: (1) any sale made by a manufacturer or a
distributor to a dealer, (2) any sale by a new motor vehicle dealer
franchised to sell a particular line-make to another new motor
vehicle dealer franchised to sell the same line-make, or (3) any sale
by a dealer to another dealer licensed under this code involving a
mobilehome, as defined in Section 396, a recreational vehicle, as
defined in Section 18010.5 of the Health and Safety Code, a
commercial coach, as defined in Section 18012 of the Health and
Safety Code, an off-highway motor vehicle subject to identification,
as defined in Section 38012, or a commercial vehicle, as defined in
Section 260.
665.5. A "U-turn" is the turning of a vehicle upon a highway so as
to proceed in the opposite direction whether accomplished by one
continuous movement or not.
668. A "vanpool vehicle" is any motor vehicle, other than a
motortruck or truck tractor, designed for carrying more than 10 but
not more than 15 persons including the driver, which is maintained
and used primarily for the nonprofit work-related transportation of
adults for the purposes of ridesharing.
670. A "vehicle" is a device by which any person or property may be
propelled, moved, or drawn upon a highway, excepting a device moved
exclusively by human power or used exclusively upon stationary rails
or tracks.
670.5. A "vehicle frame" is defined as the main longitudinal
structural members of the chassis of the vehicle, or for vehicles
with unitized body construction, the lowest main longitudinal
structural members of the body of the vehicle, used as the major
support in the construction of the motor vehicle.
671. (a) A "vehicle identification number" is the motor number,
serial number, or other distinguishing number, letter, mark,
character, or datum, or any combination thereof, required or employed
by the manufacturer or the department for the purpose of uniquely
identifying a motor vehicle or motor vehicle part or for the purpose
of registration.
(b) Whenever a vehicle is constructed of component parts
identified with one or more different vehicle identification numbers,
the vehicle identification number stamped or affixed by the
manufacturer or authorized governmental entity on the frame or
unitized frame and body, as applicable, and as defined in Section
670.5, shall determine the identity of the vehicle for registration
purposes.
672. (a) "Vehicle manufacturer" is any person who produces from raw
materials or new basic components a vehicle of a type subject to
registration under this code, off-highway motorcycles subject to
identification under this code, or trailers subject to identification
pursuant to Section 5014.1, or who permanently alters, for purposes
of retail sales, new commercial vehicles by converting the vehicles
into housecars that display the insignia of approval required by
Section 18056 of the Health and Safety Code and any regulations
issued pursuant thereto by the Department of Housing and Community
Development. As used in this section, "permanently alters" does not
include the permanent attachment of a camper to a vehicle.
(b) A vehicle manufacturer that produces a vehicle of a type
subject to registration that consists of used or reconditioned parts,
for the purposes of the code, is a remanufacturer, as defined in
Section 507.8.
(c) Unless a vehicle manufacturer either grants franchises to
franchisees in this state, or issues vehicle warranties directly to
franchisees in this state or consumers in this state, the
manufacturer shall have an established place of business or a
representative in this state.
(d) The scope and application of this section are limited to
Division 2 (commencing with Section 1500) and Division 5 (commencing
with Section 11100).
675. (a) "Vehicle salesperson" is a person not otherwise expressly
excluded by this section, who does one or a combination of the
following:
(1) Is employed as a salesperson by a dealer, as defined in
Section 285, or who, under any form of contract, agreement, or
arrangement with a dealer, for commission, money, profit, or other
thing of value, sells, exchanges, buys, or offers for sale,
negotiates, or attempts to negotiate, a sale, or exchange of an
interest in a vehicle required to be registered under this code.
(2) Induces or attempts to induce any person to buy or exchange an
interest in a vehicle required to be registered, and who receives or
expects to receive a commission, money, brokerage fees, profit, or
any other thing of value, from either the seller or purchaser of the
vehicle.
(3) Exercises managerial control over the business of a licensed
vehicle dealer or who supervises vehicle salespersons employed by a
licensed dealer, whether compensated by salary or commission,
including, but not limited to, any person who is employed by the
dealer as a general manager, assistant general manager, or sales
manager, or any employee of a licensed vehicle dealer who negotiates
with or induces a customer to enter into a security agreement or
purchase agreement or purchase order for the sale of a vehicle on
behalf of the licensed vehicle dealer.
(b) The term "vehicle salesperson" does not include any of the
following:
(1) Representatives of insurance companies, finance companies, or
public officials, who in the regular course of business, are required
to dispose of or sell vehicles under a contractual right or
obligation of the employer, or in the performance of an official
duty, or under the authority of any court of law, if the sale is for
the purpose of saving the seller from any loss or pursuant to the
authority of a court of competent jurisdiction.
(2) Persons who are licensed as a manufacturer, remanufacturer,
transporter, distributor, or representative.
(3) Persons exclusively employed in a bona fide business of
exporting vehicles, or of soliciting orders for the sale and delivery
of vehicles outside the territorial limits of the United States.
(4) Persons not engaged in the purchase or sale of vehicles as a
business, disposing of vehicles acquired for their own use, or for
use in their business when the vehicles have been so acquired and
used in good faith, and not for the purpose of avoiding the
provisions of this code.
(5) Persons regularly employed as salespersons by persons who are
engaged in a business involving the purchase, sale, or exchange of
boat trailers.
(6) Persons regularly employed as salespersons by persons who are
engaged in a business activity which does not involve the purchase,
sale, or exchange of vehicles, except incidentally in connection with
the purchase, sale, or exchange of vehicles of a type not subject to
registration under this code, boat trailers, or midget autos or
racers advertised as being built exclusively for use by children.
(7) Persons licensed as a vehicle dealer under this code doing
business as a sole ownership or member of a partnership or a
stockholder and director of a corporation or a member and manager of
a limited liability company licensed as a vehicle dealer under this
code. However, those persons shall engage in the activities of a
salesperson, as defined in this section, exclusively on behalf of the
sole ownership or partnership or corporation or limited liability
company in which they own an interest or stock, and those persons
owning stock shall be directors of the corporation; otherwise, they
are vehicle salespersons and subject to Article 2 (commencing with
Section 11800) of Chapter 4 of Division 5.
(8) Persons regularly employed as salespersons by a vehicle dealer
authorized to do business in California under Section 11700.1 of the
Vehicle Code.
675.5. A "vehicle verifier" is a person not expressly excluded by
Section 675.6 who inspects, records, documents, and submits to the
department, or its authorized representative, such proof of vehicle
identification as may be required by the department for the purpose
of registering or transferring the ownership of vehicles.
675.6. (a) "Vehicle verifier" does not include any of the
following:
(1) A peace officer.
(2) An authorized employee of the department.
(3) A special agent of the National Auto Theft Bureau.
(4) An employee of an organization certified under the provisions
of Part 5 (commencing with Section 12140) of Division 2 of the
Insurance Code whose duties require or authorize the verification of
vehicles.
(b) Any person specified in subdivision (a) may perform the duties
of a vehicle verifier without obtaining the special permit required
in Section 11300.
676. "Year-round registration" is a system whereby the director
designates a date for the expiration of registration of a vehicle and
renewal thereof in order to equalize the volume of such renewals
throughout the year.
676.5. A "water tender vehicle" is a vehicle designed to carry not
less than 1,500 gallons of water and used primarily for transporting
and delivering water to be applied by other vehicles or pumping
equipment at fire emergency scenes.
680. (a) A "youth bus" is any bus, other than a schoolbus, designed
for and when actually carrying not more than 16 persons and the
driver, used to transport children at or below the 12th-grade level
directly from a public or private school to an organized
nonschool-related youth activity within 25 miles of the school or
directly from a location which provides the organized
nonschool-related youth activity to a public or private school within
25 miles of that location.
(b) In addition to the destinations specified in subdivision (a),
a youth bus may also be used to transport children at or below the
12th-grade level to or from their place of residence if the driver
has met the requirements of Section 12523 and received additional
instruction and training approved by the Department of the California
Highway Patrol. |
