As a licensed vehicle owner, you have responsibilities under the Road Traffic Act 1974. Learn what the Act means for individuals, joint owners, under-aged owners, or businesses.
Who is the responsible person for a vehicle?
A 'responsible person' is typically the licence holder (if the vehicle is currently licensed). However, under specific circumstances, the 'responsible person' may also be:
- the new owner, if the Department of Transport and Major Infrastructure (DTMI) has received notice of a change of ownership (unless the new owner disputes taking ownership)
- the previous licence holder, if the vehicle is no longer licensed
- the person entitled to immediate possession of the vehicle
- the person named on the vehicle licence.
Vehicle owner's responsibilities
Under the Road Traffic Act 1974, vehicle owners are legally required to identify who was in charge of their vehicle at the time of an alleged traffic offence.
The following information explains how the Act affects you and your licence as:
- an individual vehicle owner/licence holder
- a joint owner or nominated licence holder
- an unincorporated club or association with vehicles licensed in your name
- an under-age vehicle owner
- a company or business with vehicles licensed in the company name
- a financial institution that repossesses vehicles.
This information is only a guide to the law and should not be interpreted as the law. For the exact legal details, please refer to the Parliamentary Counsel's Office.
Change of use
Owners must inform the Department of Transport and Major Infrastructure (DTMI) when the use and/or details of their vehicle changes. Examples of this include:
- when the purpose of the vehicle changes e.g. from a normal vehicle to a Passenger Transport Vehicle (PTV), or peer-to-peer (P2P) car rental such as Uber, Didi.*
- when there are variations to the vehicle class, insurance, fee type, conditions or concessions.
If the vehicle no longer requires special identification plates (e.g. PTV plates), the plates must be returned and a general series plate issued. The compulsory Motor Injury Insurance (MII) class must also be varied to show the new class (e.g. 3c to 1a).
* If you want to participate in a P2P car rental service, you’ll need to complete a Declaration of Motor Injury Insurance Class (Form E67) – PDF form to change their insurance class to 3(g) and pay any required debit adjustment.
If you want to revert from class 3(g) insurance back to class 1A insurance, you’ll need to complete and submit Form E67. You may be eligible for a refund of the difference in fees paid.
Any PTV with class 3(f) insurance being used for P2P car rental won’t need to change their insurance class from 3(f) to 3(g).
Infringement notices issued for camera detected traffic offences
Regardless of who breaks the road rules whilst driving your vehicle, as the 'responsible person', you’ll receive the infringement notice. If you believe someone else was driving at the time of the offence, you must tell the police who it was.
If the police ask you to identify who was driving your vehicle, and you can’t or refuse to tell them, you could face penalties.
Joint owners and nominated licence holders
In most cases, the owner (purchaser) will be the 'responsible person' for the vehicle. However, when there is more than 1 owner, all owners of the vehicle will need to nominate a single 'responsible person'.
The following rules apply to all jointly owned vehicles:
- a vehicle can’t be licensed in the name of more than 1 person at a time
- where a vehicle is jointly-owned all owners must complete and sign a Proof of Identity Nominated Owner/Vehicle Licence Holder (Form VL186) - PDF to nominate an eligible individual to be the 'responsible person'
- where there is no change in the joint owners, but the nominated owner/licence holder is to change, a Change in nominated joint owners (Form E4) - PDF is to be completed by all owners. Transfer and vehicle licence duty won’t be payable
- where a joint owner or 'responsible person' is to be removed a Change in nominated joint owners (Form E4) - PDF is to be completed by all owners. Transfer and vehicle licence duty will be payable
- the nominated owner will be recorded by DTMI as the person responsible for the vehicle licence
- an individual may not be nominated as the 'responsible person' for a vehicle unless that individual is also a joint owner of the vehicle
- the nominated owner must be made aware of their obligations as the 'responsible person'.
Changing or removing the nominated owner/licence holder
If you wish to cancel the nomination of the responsible person and change it to another joint owner, all joint owners of the vehicle must complete and sign a Change in Nominated/Joint Owners (Form E4) - PDF.
If you cancel the nomination and the new owner/licence holder isn’t currently also a joint owner, or the previous 'responsible person' is no longer a joint owner, the vehicle must be transferred. Payment of transfer and vehicle licence duty is required.
Business partnerships and vehicle licences
In the case of a business partnership, when the owners of the vehicle have nominated a 'responsible person', only that person's name will appear on the licence.
If the business is operating under a trading name (and isn’t incorporated and doesn’t have an ACN) the trading name can’t be recorded on the licence.
Under-age vehicle owners
You must provide proof of identity that you meet age requirements for the class of vehicle being licensed (16 years for light vehicles up to 4,500 kg, 18 years for heavy vehicles). Refer to the proof of identity fact sheet, Primary & Secondary Proof of Identity - PDF, for information about ID requirements.
If you're under 16 and own a vehicle, you can't be the responsible person on the licence. If you share ownership with someone over 16 (like a parent), they can be the responsible person, and you can still be listed as a joint owner.
The responsible person will be liable for demerit points and fines for offences committed by the driver of the vehicle, unless they can provide the identity of the driver at the time the offence was committed.
When completing a vehicle transfer or licensing a vehicle, all owners must complete and sign:
It’s preferred that the VL186 form is submitted along with:
- Notification of change of ownership vehicle licence transfer (Form MR9) - PDF or
- Application to license a vehicle (Form VL17) - PDF (completed with the nominated responsible person as the buyer).
However, if that doesn’t occur, the VL186 form must be completed and lodged within 2 calendar months of the acquisition date.
Once you turn 16, provided you are listed as a joint owner, you may apply to be nominated as the 'responsible person' for the vehicle by submitting:
Vehicles belonging to a company or business
Companies with vehicles licensed in their name will be deemed to be the 'responsible person' for the vehicle. This means the company can be fined if it doesn’t take reasonable steps or make proper arrangements to keep accurate records of who is driving its vehicles at all times.
For corporations, the penalty is $5,000.
Vehicles belonging to clubs and associations
Vehicles can no longer be licensed in a club's name.
Unincorporated associations and clubs (such as sporting clubs) that have vehicles currently licensed in their name are considered the 'responsible person' for those vehicles. When these vehicles are replaced, the replacement vehicles must be licensed to a legal entity. This means they must be licensed to a person, a company, an incorporated organisation, or another group that is recognised as a legal entity.
To meet these requirements, vehicle(s) must be licensed to a nominated individual who is a joint owner of the vehicle, or the club must become an incorporated body.
Incorporation of an association or club
Incorporation of an association or club means that it becomes a legal entity, separate from the individual members. Put another way, the association is considered by law to have a distinct identity that continues regardless of changes to the membership.
The process to incorporate an association is relatively simple and inexpensive. Furthermore, there are some advantages under the Owner Onus laws. For example, if your club's vehicle is licensed in a nominated individual's name and the club wants to remove the nominated owner from the licence record, the club is responsible for paying vehicle licence duty and transfer fees.
An incorporated club or association would remain the licensed vehicle owner regardless of membership, executive, committee or staff changes.
Repossessed vehicles
When a vehicle is repossessed or a lease ends, the financier or lessor becomes the owner of the vehicle under the Road Traffic (Administration) Act 2008. They must apply to transfer the vehicle licence into their name by completing an Notification of change of ownership vehicle licence transfer (Form MR9) – PDF, for each repossession to notify DTMI.
Financiers or lessors often dispose of returned vehicles through agreements with auction houses. In these cases, the auction house isn’t required to transfer the vehicle licence into its name.
An exemption from vehicle licence duty may apply if the sale to a third party is accompanied by a completed Vehicle Licence Duty – Exemptions on Grant or Transfer of Vehicle Licence (FDA36) form – PDF, from the Department of Finance.
To calculate the duty payable, please refer to Vehicle licence duty (stamp duty) calculator.