C.A.R.S - car allowance rebate system

NHTSA ALLOWS SALVAGE EXTENSION PERIOD UNDER CARS PROGRAM:

The agency issued a final rule extending the time by which a disposal facility must crush or shred a CARS trade-in vehicle by 90 days, for a total of 270 days. To read more about that extension, click here.

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To view the updated Required Forms click here.

NOTICE

To help you to track when your claim has been approved, we have developed a NEW EMAIL PROCESS to ALERT you when your claim is approved for payment. Please be on the lookout for emails from noreply@faa.gov. To see the text of the email, click here.


Common Transaction Mistakes

Fueleconomy.gov Side-by-Side Mismatch

Make sure to pull fuel economy information from http://www.fueleconomy.gov/feg/CarsSearchIntro.shtml
Uploading the side-by-side comparison from any other site will not include all of the required information and may result in a returned claim.

To view other common transaction mistakes click here

Completing a Transaction

You must be registered before completing a transaction.

NOTE: The CARS program requires you to submit documentation that verifies every step of the transaction. A lack of documentation or illegible documents will cause the transaction to be rejected. All forms are available for download on the Required Forms tab on the top of the page or the Disposal and Salvage button on the right hand side.

REMEMBER: If you need assistance with the transaction process please reference the Quick Guide to Transaction Submission.

Click here to complete a transaction

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Disposal and Salvage

This notice is provided pursuant to the Privacy Act of 1974, 5 USC § 552a: This information is solicited under the authority of Public Law 111-32, 123 Stat. 1859. Furnishing the information is voluntary, but failure to provide all or part of the information may result in disapproval of your request for a credit on this purchase or lease transaction under the Cars Program. The principal purposes for collecting the information are to determine if purchase or lease transactions are eligible for credits under the CARS Program, to ensure proper disposal of trade-in vehicles, to prevent, identify and penalize fraud in connection with the Program, and to update an existing government database of Vehicle Identification Numbers. If you complete the optional survey, the survey information will be used to report to Congress on the Program. Other routine uses are published in the Federal Register at 65 F.R. 19476 (April 11, 2000), available at: www.dot.gov/privacy.

Ensuring transaction security is a crucial requirement of NHTSA-CARS clients. Using industry-standard security techniques ensures that your personal and financial information remains confidential. NHTSA-CARS uses security technologies that include your personal customer number and password, government standard encryption, and hardened perimeter protections such as firewalls and intrusion detection systems. The combination of your customer number and password enables you to be uniquely identified to NHTSA-CARS transaction processing. It is your responsibility to keep your password secure. Compromising your password by sharing it with others can have negative consequences for the integrity of your transactions.

You will also need to use a secure browser. Certain browsers have the ability to communicate securely by encrypting the information as it passes across the Internet. This method of communication is called Secure Socket Layer (SSL). NHTSA requires the use of a properly configured browser as a condition for connecting to NHTSA-CARS using SSL. Therefore, SSL must be enabled on your browser to establish a connection with NHTSA-CARS. Additionally, be aware that your transaction passes through multiple security mechanisms, any one of which can halt the transaction if suspicious activity coming from your computer is detected. To avoid this from happening, please keep your anti-virus software on your computer current.

Your Internet Browser – How to Ensure That Your Session is Secure

Once you've downloaded and installed your browser, here's how you can check for yourself that your Online Banking session is secure. As you browse through the resources available on the Internet, you'll notice that your browser's status bar changes with the Web page you have loaded. You should see a padlock graphic, either locked or unlocked, like this:

  • Secure UnSecure
  • Microsoft Internet Explorer N/A
  • Mozilla Firefox

This notice is provided pursuant to the Privacy Act of 1974, 5 USC § 552a: This information is solicited under the authority of Public Law 111-32, 123 Stat. 1859. Furnishing the information is voluntary, but failure to provide all or part of the information may result in disapproval of your request for a credit on this purchase or lease transaction under the Cars Program. The principal purposes for collecting the information are to determine if purchase or lease transactions are eligible for credits under the CARS Program, to ensure proper disposal of trade-in vehicles, to prevent, identify and penalize fraud in connection with the Program, and to update an existing government database of Vehicle Identification Numbers. If you complete the optional survey, the survey information will be used to report to Congress on the Program. Other routine uses are published in the Federal Register at 65 F.R. 19476 (April 11, 2000), available at: www.dot.gov/privacy.

Ensuring transaction security is a crucial requirement of NHTSA-CARS clients. Using industry-standard security techniques ensures that your personal and financial information remains confidential. NHTSA-CARS uses security technologies that include your personal customer number and password, government standard encryption, and hardened perimeter protections such as firewalls and intrusion detection systems. The combination of your customer number and password enables you to be uniquely identified to NHTSA-CARS transaction processing. It is your responsibility to keep your password secure. Compromising your password by sharing it with others can have negative consequences for the integrity of your transactions.

You will also need to use a secure browser. Certain browsers have the ability to communicate securely by encrypting the information as it passes across the Internet. This method of communication is called Secure Socket Layer (SSL). NHTSA requires the use of a properly configured browser as a condition for connecting to NHTSA-CARS using SSL. Therefore, SSL must be enabled on your browser to establish a connection with NHTSA-CARS. Additionally, be aware that your transaction passes through multiple security mechanisms, any one of which can halt the transaction if suspicious activity coming from your computer is detected. To avoid this from happening, please keep your anti-virus software on your computer current.

Your Internet Browser – How to Ensure That Your Session is Secure

Once you've downloaded and installed your browser, here's how you can check for yourself that your Online Banking session is secure. As you browse through the resources available on the Internet, you'll notice that your browser's status bar changes with the Web page you have loaded. You should see a padlock graphic, either locked or unlocked, like this:

  • Secure UnSecure
  • Microsoft Internet Explorer N/A
  • Mozilla Firefox

Code Explanation Reject Percentage Quick Guide to Transaction Submission Page
201 Junk Automobile, Cars.gov not written on Page 1 and 2 of Title 13.58% 16-17
999 3 or More Errors Found***Recheck Entire Transaction 10.42%
302 Proof of Insurance not current and in force for previous 12 months 9.06% 18
701 Missing signature(s) on Summary of Sale 8.62% 21
703 Trade-In VIN Mismatch on Summary of Sale 5.37% 21 & 29
116 Missing Summary of Sale/Lease (Deal Sheet and Buyer's Certification) 4.92% 21
301 VIN Mismatch on Trade-In Proof of Insurance 4.67% 18
704 New VIN Mismatch on Summary of Sale 4.07% 21 & 29
403 Trade-In not registered to same owner for previous 12 months 3.58% 19
108 Missing Trade-In Registration 3.06% 19
101 All Attachments missing 3.01% 14 & 27-28
114

Missing Fuel Economy.gov Side by Side Comparison

Go to http://www.fueleconomy.gov/feg/CarsSearchIntro.shtml to print the correct side-by-side comparison

 2.80% 24
203 VIN Mismatch on Trade-In Title 2.39% 16-17
601 Side by Side Trade in Category Does not Match 2.23% 29-30

Dealers should note that there are three major categories of errors in these leading reasons for rejections: (1) missing documents, (2) missing Junk Auto brands and signatures; and (3) mismatches between VINs on the various documents. The leading cause is the absence of the required CARS brand ("Junk Automobile, CARS.gov") on the trade-in title. Dealers who follow the guidance available on the website should be able to avoid such errors easily. Dealers who receive rejections should review the invoice and all attachments before resubmitting to avoid even further delay in receiving reimbursement. NHTSA is increasing its capacity to deal with dealers' questions about how to submit a proper invoice, but the most important thing dealers can do is use the guidance on the website and review their submissions carefully before submitting them."

  1. Junk Automobile, CARS.gov is not written on the Trade-in Title

    Junk Automobile, CARS.gov needs to be written CLEARLY across FRONT and BACK of the trade-in title.

  2. Incomplete Summary of Sale

    Make sure every field is filled out, including MSRP and incentive amounts. NO fields can be left blank. Dealer and all purchasers MUST have signed the Summary of Sale.

  3. Proof of Insurance

    It is important to show evidence of 12 months of continuous insurance coverage up through the date of the sale.

    • We have received numerous transactions where the VINs do not match, letters are not signed, or documents that only show a fraction of a year of coverage. Please make the following data points clear by circling them in your documentation: VIN, start and end dates of coverage, and company name.
    • You may submit one or more insurance cards, declaration statements, database printouts, or a signed letter from an agent or corporate office on company letterhead.
    • Insurance is NOT required in NH or WI, but dealers in these states should minimize the risk of human error by uploading an attachment named Proof_of_Insurance_Not_Reguired. The attachment can be a single page that reads in bold letters, "Insurance Not Required in this State."

  4. Fueleconomy.gov Side-by-Side Mismatch

    Make sure to pull fuel economy information from http://www.fueleconomy.gov/feg/CarsSearchIntro.shtml Uploading the side-by-side comparison from any other site will not include all of the required information and may result in a returned claim.

  5. Transaction Form/Invoice Screen does not match the data in the attached documents.

    Common data entry errors include transposed VINs and Drivers License Numbers. Do not leave any fields blank.

Dealer invoice # 123456 has been approved for payment by the CARS system and sent to the Department of the Treasury for processing. You can expect to receive a direct deposit in the bank account you specified during registration. The payment should be posted to your account within 2 business days. If payment has not been posted to your account within that timeframe, please verify that your banking information, including the ABA routing number, is correct. If there is an error in your bank information, please send an email with your contact information and the corrected banking information to 9-AMC-NHTSA-CARS-AP-SUPPLIER@FAA.GOV.