Dealer stock register in QLD: the transactions register
Queensland motor dealers must keep a transactions register at each place of business and enter every transaction within 24 hours of completing it. It can be kept on paper or electronically, and it covers consignments, deposits, trade-ins and moves between sites as well as sales and purchases.
- Required by section 117 of the Motor Dealers and Chattel Auctioneers Act 2014, with the particulars in the Regulation.
- One register at each place of business, with entries made within 24 hours of the transaction.
- Hard copy or electronic. Keep it securely for at least 5 years.
- Failing to keep it, or to enter a transaction on time, carries up to 200 penalty units or 1 year’s imprisonment.
What the law requires
Under section 117 of the Motor Dealers and Chattel Auctioneers Act 2014, a motor dealer must keep a register of transactions at each place it carries on business, and enter the prescribed particulars of each transaction within 24 hours after it’s completed. The particulars are set out in the Motor Dealers and Chattel Auctioneers Regulation 2014.
What counts as a transaction
- Buying or selling a vehicle (including vehicle parts).
- Holding an auction, including an unsuccessful one.
- Accepting a deposit or giving an option to buy.
- Accepting a trade-in.
- Accepting a vehicle on consignment.
- Moving a vehicle between your places of business.
What to record
| Field | Detail |
|---|---|
| Date received | The date you received the vehicle |
| Type of transaction | For example “sale on consignment for a private seller” |
| Odometer | Reading in words and figures, as at the date you received it |
| Vehicle | Make, model, colour, build date, VIN, registration number, engine number (chassis number for a caravan) |
| Odometer or engine replaced | If known to you, whether the odometer has been replaced, and whether the engine has been replaced and roughly when |
| Seller | Name and address |
| Sale | Date, price, and the buyer’s name and address, or the date the vehicle was returned to its owner |
| Location | Moves between sites, and the exact location if you have several |
Check the exact wording of each particular in section 13 of the Regulation before you design a paper form.
Electronic registers and corrections
The Regulation lets you keep the transactions register in hard copy or electronic form. On paper, corrections are ruled through, signed and dated. Electronically, the entry is struck out with the reason, the name of the person and the date. Back electronic records up monthly to somewhere off-site, and keep records securely for at least 5 years.
Consignment entries
Accepting a car on consignment is its own transaction, so it goes in the register within 24 hours, with the transaction type showing it’s a consignment. When the car sells, record the sale; if it goes back unsold, record the date it was returned to its owner. Consignment also brings a Form 9 and trust account obligations, covered in our Form 9 guide and trust account guide.
Penalties and inspection
Not keeping a transactions register at each place of business, or not entering a transaction within 24 hours, each carry a maximum of 200 penalty units or 1 year’s imprisonment. Inspectors for the Act are appointed under the Fair Trading Inspectors Act 2014; for exactly what they can require and how quickly you must produce the register, check with the Office of Fair Trading. Licensing itself is covered in our QLD car dealer licence guide.