1. (a) If a certificate of title:

   1. (1) is lost or stolen;
   2. (2) is mutilated;
   3. (3) is destroyed; or

   4. (4) becomes illegible;

      the person that owns the vehicle or the legal representative or legal successor in interest of the person that owns the vehicle for which the certificate of title was issued, as shown by the records of the bureau, shall apply for and may obtain a duplicate certificate of title.

2. (b) To obtain a duplicate certificate of title under subsection (a), a person must:

   1. (1) furnish information satisfactory to the bureau concerning the loss, theft, mutilation, destruction, or illegibility of the certificate of title; and
   2. (2) pay the applicable fee under subsection (e) or (f).
3. (c) The word "duplicate" shall be notated on the certificate of title issued under this section.
4. (d) When a duplicate certificate of title is issued, the previous certificate of title becomes void.

5. (e) The fee for a duplicate certificate of title issued before January 1, 2017, for a vehicle other than a watercraft is eight dollars ($8). The fee shall be distributed as follows:

   1. (1) One dollar ($1) to the motor vehicle highway account.
   2. (2) One dollar ($1) to the highway, road and street fund.
   3. (3) Six dollars ($6) to the commission fund.

6. (f) The fee for a duplicate certificate of title issued before January 1, 2017, for a watercraft is fifteen dollars and fifty cents ($15.50). The fee shall be distributed as follows:

   1. (1) Fifty cents ($0.50) to the state motor vehicle technology fund.
   2. (2) Two dollars ($2) to the crossroads 2000 fund.
   3. (3) One dollar and twenty-five cents ($1.25) to the emergency communications fund.
   4. (4) Four dollars and seventy-five cents ($4.75) to the commission fund.
   5. (5) Seven dollars ($7) to the department of natural resources.

7. (g) The fee for a duplicate certificate of title issued after December 31, 2016, is fifteen dollars ($15). Except as provided in subsection (h), the fee shall be distributed as follows:

   1. (1) Fifty cents ($0.50) to the state motor vehicle technology fund.
   2. (2) One dollar and twenty-five cents ($1.25) to the department of natural resources.
   3. (3) Three dollars and twenty-five cents ($3.25) to the motor vehicle highway account.
   4. (4) Five dollars ($5) to the crossroads 2000 fund.
   5. (5) One dollar and twenty-five cents ($1.25) to the emergency communications fund.
   6. (6) Three dollars and seventy-five cents ($3.75) to the commission fund.

8. (h) After June 30, 2024, when a fee imposed under subsection (g) is collected by the department, instead of depositing three dollars and seventy-five cents ($3.75) into the commission fund as required by subsection (g)(6), the department shall instead deposit one dollar and eighty-eight cents ($1.88) of that amount into the motor carrier regulation fund established by IC 8-2.1-23-1 , and the remainder shall be deposited in the commission fund.

   [Pre-1991 Recodification Citation: 9-1-3-9; Pre-2016 Revision Citations: 9-29-15-1; 9-29-15-1(b); subsection (e) formerly 9-29-4-5.]

As added by P.L.2-1991, SEC.5. Amended by P.L.125-2012, SEC.79; P.L.198-2016, SEC.222; P.L.256-2017, SEC.104; P.L.27-2018, SEC.6; P.L.205-2025, SEC.53; P.L.152-2026, SEC.90.