How to fill out a police book: examples and useful information!
What is the purpose of an automobile police book and how do I complete it? If you're looking for an example of a completed automobile police book, you've come to the right place.
As a professional seller of used cars, your activity is subject to a number of rules, and keeping an automobile police book is one of them.
This compulsory document, also known as the register of movable assets for used car dealers, records all your company's vehicle purchases and sales. It records all transactions, keeping track of the origin of vehicles and their purchase price.
How do I fill in a vehicle police book? What legal fields must it include? How can I manage a computerized police book using online software? Here are all the details you need to know to fill in this document accurately, with no more questions asked!
How do you fill in an automobile police book?
A police book is a document with a hard cover and sturdy binding, whose pages are irremovable and numbered. These pages take the form of tables, with fields to be scrupulously filled in.
The rules for filling in the form are as follows
- entries follow one another, without spaces, and with numbers in chronological order ;
- no blank pages are left;
- information must not be erasable;
- no erasures.
© sbc-auto
ℹ️ The police book must be able to be presented in due form to the inspector, i.e. it must be completed and fully up to date. In the event of an inspection by the authorities, it must be easily accessible on the premises at all times.
What information is required?
For each entry, the mandatory information serves to guarantee the traceability of your used vehicle transactions.
It concerns the used vehicle, the seller, the buyer and the transaction:
Used vehicle identification and description
- Policy number (or VO number), in chronological order,
- date of entry into the fleet,
- vehicle type,
- vehicle make and model,
- vehicle color,
- year of registration,
- odometer reading,
- registration number,
- vehicle registration number, VIN ( serial number),
- country of origin.
Seller identification
In the case of a natural person or private individual :
- name,
- first name
- address,
- ID number.
In the case of a company :
- name,
- contact details,
- SIRET number.
Buyer identification
- Last name
- first name
- address,
- ID number.
Information concerning the transaction
- purchase price,
- selling price,
- payment method,
- exit date,
- destination: sale, depot/sale, etc.
ℹ️ Exit information is not a legal requirement, but provides greater transparency in the event of an inspection.
Example of a completed vehicle police book
To help you fill in your own register, here's an outline of a completed vehicle police book , including the mandatory fields to comply with current legislation:
Autocerfa
At a glance, you can see the vehicle's registration number, make and other features that distinguish it from other vehicles in the same category.
What you need to know: obligations and penalties
Obligations
- Have the register endorsed by your local police station, gendarmerie or town hall: it must be signed and initialed by the authorities before any information is entered;
- Precisely and unequivocally identify each used vehicle in your fleet that is the subject of a transaction;
- Each page must include the relevant legal texts .
☝️ The conditions under which a professional seller may buy and sell movable property are laid down by law no. 87-962 of November 30 1987 and decree no. 88-1040 of November 14 1988.
Penalties
Failure to keep a police book may result in :
- fines of up to 30,000 euros ;
- imprisonment for up to 6 months.
Retention period
The vehicle police book must be kept for at least 5 years after the closure of the company, and must be maintained in good condition.
Software for electronic police books
Motor vehicle police book software ? It's ideal for keeping track of mandatory fields and facilitating record-keeping by saving time and minimizing data entry errors!
Here are three programs to consider to simplify your task:
- Autocerfa: this online tool for used car dealers and resellers lets you manage your administrative documents, including Cerfa forms and the computerized police book available in its ELITE version.
- KeplerVO: this software, a pioneer in computerized police book management, enables you to keep your document up to date and edit it in PDF format. Designed by automotive professionals, it facilitates and digitizes all vehicle buying and selling activities.
- Spider VO: this all-in-one solution for car dealers and used-vehicle distributors features broad functional coverage and enables the computerized policy book to be generated and edited, the PDF version of which can be printed from any printer.
💡 Keeping a register established by software is authorized, subject to the following conditions:
- the software used must ensure the chronology of entries with the numbering and date inscribed on the pages, without the possibility of modification (or, where applicable, by creating a new computer record with indication of its reason) ;
- the user must be able to prove the reliability of the system, and to present an up-to-date version in PDF or printed format at any time;
- the professional's activity must comply with the specifics of RGPD regulations: to find out more, visit the CNIL website.
The tools presented are compliant and assure you of the integrity and security of the data they record.
We've delivered the essentials for filling out and rigorously maintaining your police book, in line with the regulations. Are you ready for the digital version?
Updated article, originally published March 2020.
Article translated from French