Certificate of title required.

(1) Any off-highway vehicle that is purchased by a resident of this state after the effective date of this act or that is owned by a resident and is operated on the public lands of this state must be titled pursuant to this chapter.

(2) A person may not sell, assign, or transfer an off-highway vehicle titled by the state without delivering to the purchaser or transferee a valid certificate of title with an assignment on it showing the transfer of title to the purchaser or transferee. A person may not purchase or otherwise acquire an off-highway vehicle required to be titled without obtaining a certificate of title for the vehicle in his or her name. The purchaser or transferee shall, within 30 days after a change in off-highway vehicle ownership, file an application for a title transfer with the county tax collector. An additional $10 fee shall be charged against a purchaser or transferee who files a title transfer application after the 30-day period. The county tax collector may retain $5 of the additional amount.

(3) A certificate of title is prima facie evidence of the ownership of the off-highway vehicle and is good for the life of the off-highway vehicle so long as the certificate is owned or held by the legal holder. If a titled off-highway vehicle is destroyed or abandoned, the owner, with the consent of any recorded lienholders, shall, within 30 days after the destruction or abandonment, surrender to the department all title documents for cancellation.

(4) The department shall provide labeled places on the title where the seller’s price shall be indicated when an off-highway vehicle is sold and where a selling dealer shall record his or her valid sales tax certificate of registration number.

(5)(a) There shall be a service charge of $4.25 for each application that is handled in connection with the issuance, duplication, or transfer of any certificate of title. There shall be a service charge of $1.25 for each application that is handled in connection with the recording or notation of a lien on an off-highway vehicle that is not in connection with the purchase of such vehicle.

(b) The service charges specified in paragraph (a) shall be collected by the department on any application handled directly from its office. Otherwise, these service charges shall be collected and retained by the tax collector who handles the application.

(c) In addition to the fees provided in paragraph (a), any tax collector may impose an additional service charge of not more than 50 cents on any transaction specified in paragraph (a) when such transaction occurs at any tax collector’s branch office.