§708.  Issuance of certificates; satisfaction of lien or security interest; security measures

A.  The commissioner, when issuing a certificate of title or a corrected certificate, shall maintain sufficient records and information in his possession to produce a duplicate copy of the certificate of title or the corrected certificate of title.  Where there are no liens shown on the title certificate, such certificate shall be signed by the motor vehicle commissioner and forwarded to the applicant.  When a lien is shown in the certificate, the certificate of title, which shall be signed by the motor vehicle commissioner, shall be forwarded to the lien holder of first rank who shall retain it until the full amount of such mortgage is liquidated.  The first lien holder shall then deliver the title with proper release of the lien executed in the title to the registered owner if no other lien exists, or to the next ranking lien holder as shown in the files of the commissioner.

B.(1)  Upon the final discharge of any chattel mortgage or security interest, the owner or any lien holder may present the certificate of title with the fee prescribed by law, if not prepaid, to the commissioner and request that the commissioner note on the face of the certificate of title and his records a cancellation of notation of said lien so endorsed as satisfied by the holder thereof on the face of the certificate of title.  The commissioner shall comply with such request, if the satisfaction  appears genuine.

(2)  When the certificate of title endorsed to evidence satisfaction of a lien noted thereon has been lost or stolen, the commissioner may issue a duplicate certificate of title noted on its face to show cancellation of notice of lien so endorsed, only when all the following conditions have been satisfied:

(a)  The owner establishes to the satisfaction of the commissioner on a form satisfactory to him, that he is unable to obtain a duplicate certificate of title endorsed by the lien holder as provided in Paragraph (1) of this Subsection, due to the fact that the lien holder is no longer in existence.

(b)  The secured party of record has filed a termination statement as provided by R.S. 10:9-513.

C.  The commissioner, when issuing a certificate of title, or a duplicate certificate, for a motor vehicle shall use security procedures, processes, and materials in the preparation and issuance of each certificate of title to prevent, to the greatest extent possible, the ability of a person to alter, counterfeit, duplicate, or modify the certificate of title.  The commissioner shall charge an additional fee of fifty cents per certificate of title or duplicate certificate to cover the cost of security measures.

Acts 1950, No. 342, §11.  Amended by Acts 1952, No. 121, §1; Acts 1972, No. 771, §4; Acts 1976, No. 162, §1; Acts 1989, No. 137, §11, eff. Sept. 1, 1989; Acts 1990, No. 917, §1; Acts 1990, No. 1079, §5, eff. Sept. 1, 1990; Acts 1995, No. 1201, §4, eff. June 29, 1995; Acts 2001, No. 128, §12, eff. July 1, 2001.