Ohio Administrative Code › Title 4501:1 - Bureau of Motor Vehicles › Chapter 4501:1-3 - Motor Vehicle Dealers and Salespersons › Section 4501:1-3-08 - Place of business required for used motor vehicle dealers

Current through all regulations passed and filed through July 1, 2024
(A) A used motor
			 vehicle dealer shall have an established place of business that meets all of
			 the following requirements:
(1) Has a display
			 lot of no less than three thousand five hundred square feet, not including
			 driveways or office, with adequate ground cover of a hard surface that is free
			 from the collection of dust, mud, water, or other unsightly
			 conditions;
(2) Except as set forth
			 in paragraphs (B) and (D) of this rule, is separated with a barrier, as defined
			 in this rule, from any residence and from any other business or service
			 facility that is not primarily related to assisting or furthering the selling,
			 displaying, offering for sale, or dealing in motor vehicles;
A barrier is a permanent fixture or feature of the property
				that distinguishes the display lot from residences or other businesses,
				comprised of metal, brick, stone, concrete, wood, heavy support cable,
				landscaping, curbing, or other comparable feature that creates a distinct space
				for the display lot. It shall clearly delineate a separation between a
				residence or an unrelated business and the beginning of the dealership's
				established place of business. Such separation shall be properly maintained
				during the entire period for which a used motor vehicle dealer's license is
				held.
(3) Includes a
			 permanent usable structure on the display lot that is identifiable as a motor
			 vehicle dealership to the public that includes an easily accessible office of
			 at least a contigious one hundred eighty square feet with walls of a hard
			 surface and shall not be used as a storage or other utility area. The office
			 shall include, at minimum, a desk, three chairs, and a filing cabinet, or
			 similar furnishings to create an environment conducive to transacting business,
			 consummating sales, and facilitating the storage of records, all of which shall
			 be kept in a neat and orderly fashion at all times. The office shall include
			 adequate lighting, electrical service, heating and ventilation that is secure
			 and safe for a retail office environment. The entire premises, including any
			 plumbing fixtures, shall not be in violation of any applicable building and
			 zoning requirements. The dealer shall provide evidence to show building and
			 zoning requirements have been met upon request of the registrar or the
			 registrar's designee. Upon request of the dealer, the registrar of motor
			 vehicles shall consider, and may approve, reasonable variances to these
			 requirements except for variances to the building and zoning
			 requirements;
(4) Has a business
			 telephone in service at all times that shall be answered and identified
			 exclusively for the dealership's business. The business telephone number shall
			 be legible and posted in a conspicuous place in public view. A motor vehicle
			 dealer shall notify the registrar in writing within fifteen days of any change
			 in the business telephone number;
(5) Is staffed during posted business hours
			 by a a sole proprietor, officer of a corporation, trustee of a business trust,
			 or in the case of a partnership or limited liability company, partner or
			 member, or any such entity as defined in division (A) of section
			 4517.01
			 of the Revised Code, or a licensed motor vehicle salesperson under sections
			 4517.09,
			 4517.14,
			 and
			 4517.20
			 of the Revised Code.