Release I
AAMVA conducted a NMVTIS pilot from July 1999 to December 1999. Participants included Virginia, Indiana, Kentucky and Arizona, as well as central file operators, National Insurance Crime Bureau (NICB) and the Polk Company. Data was gathered during the pilot to determine whether the system met the requirements of the Anti Car Theft Act of 1992 in a manner that was technically feasible, and whether the system reduced title fraud and titles issued on stolen vehicles.
The pilot showed that NMVTIS fulfilled the requirements of the Anti Car Theft Act in a way that was technically feasible, and that it also provided benefits to state titling agencies and law enforcement by reducing fraud and deterring titling of stolen vehicles. In addition, the pilot showed that the system improved the states’ titling processes.
The Anti Car Theft Act specifies five capabilities that must characterize NMVTIS at a minimum. The NMVTIS system design has incorporated all of these requirements in its system specifications and procedures. The Act also requires that the state use NMVTIS to instantly and reliably verify information on the previous state’s title document, prior to issuing a new title. During the pilot, transactions responded within the performance requirement 97 percent of the time.
The pilot concluded that NMVTIS reduced fraud by reducing the occurrence of title washing. Brands are washed from titles when the state that issues the new title does not carry forward a brand issued by some previous state. Since NMVTIS maintains brands on a central file, they are available to any inquirer, and are never washed from titles. Using data from the pilot, NMVTIS could prevent approximately 57,000 titles from being washed per year.
The pilot demonstrated that NMVTIS reduced the issuance of titles to stolen vehicles. Although a theft check is not required by the Anti Car Theft Act prior to issuance of a title, the pilot of NMVTIS included a theft check. The pilot data showed that NMVTIS could affect a cost avoidance of almost $214 million per year in insurance payoffs on stolen vehicles.
Based on the findings of the pilot, the NMVTIS working group (under AAMVA’s Vehicle Registration and Titling (VRT) Discipline) recommended continued support of the system by AAMVA and the Department of Justice. Further, the NMVTIS working group recommended that AAMVA continue to assist states in obtaining federal funding for development of the system.
The NMVTIS Pilot Evaluation Report shows the goals of the pilot were met and incorporates State and Law Enforcement Findings. States participating in the pilot did, however, identify ways to improve the system. Lessons learned during the pilot were incorporated into a modification to the system specification, NMVTIS Release 2 (implemented into production March 31, 2003). Pilot jurisdictions that implemented Release 1 modified their systems to incorporate the Release 2 changes. Subsequent modifications were also made and Release 2.1.1 was implemented into production in July 2005. Jurisdictions are using the Release 2.1.1 system specification.
For more information on NMVTIS, contact AAMVA's Operations and Quality Assurance Department.