At the Dealership With an AB 60 License or an ITIN: What Each Desk Will Ask For

Most of the confusion at a dealership comes from treating it as one conversation. It is three, often with three different people, and each one is asking a different question. Knowing which desk wants what keeps you from handing your ITIN letter to someone who only needed your license.

Three desks, three questions

What your AB 60 license does at the counter

It is a California driver's license, and it identifies you as one. Vehicle Code section 12801.9 makes it a violation of the Unruh Civil Rights Act for a business establishment to discriminate against a person because they hold or present a license issued under that section. A dealer is a business establishment. A lender's credit decision is a separate thing, made on its own criteria, but "we don't accept that license as ID" is not a lawful reason to turn you away.

Financing without a Social Security number: what usually works

• Ask before you shop which lenders the dealer uses that accept an ITIN, or no taxpayer number at all. Some do and some do not; this varies by lender, not by law.
• Bring the paper that proves your income — pay stubs, bank statements, or tax returns filed with your ITIN — and two documents showing your current address.
• Bring the IRS letter that assigned your ITIN if the lender will use it.
• Expect the terms to depend on the down payment. A larger one tends to open more doors when there is little U.S. credit history to look at.

Never sign a contract with blank spaces, and take a copy of everything you sign before you leave.

Insurance before the keys

A car on a California road needs financial responsibility, and the driver must be able to show evidence of it on request (Vehicle Code section 16028). The dealer's own coverage is for its inventory, not for your purchase. So, before you sign:

1. Get the VIN from the buyer's order and send it to your agent.
2. Give the lender's exact name and mailing address so it can be listed as lienholder or loss payee.
3. Ask the lender which coverages it requires and the highest deductible it allows. Lenders commonly require collision and comprehensive until the loan is paid.
4. Have the policy bound and the ID card on your phone before you drive away.

What varies by insurance company: whether it can bind on a VIN alone the same day, and what it asks for after the sale to finish the file. What varies by lender: the required coverages and deductible.

One name, spelled one way, everywhere

The sales contract, the loan, the title application and the insurance policy should all carry your name exactly as it appears on your license, both surnames included if the license shows both. A mismatch here becomes a delayed title, a lienholder that cannot be matched, or a claim check that a bank will not cash.

The week after

Keep the dealer's paperwork in the car until the plates and registration card arrive. Confirm that the lender appears on your declarations page, and send the lender proof of coverage if it asks. If anything on the contract is different from what you were told, raise it with the dealer in writing right away.

If you want the insurance ready before you go to the dealership, start a quote here with the car you are considering.