(a) “Vehicle salesperson” is a person not otherwise expressly excluded by this section, who does one or a combination of the following:
(1) Is employed as a salesperson by a dealer, as defined in Section 285, or who, under any form of contract, agreement, or arrangement with a dealer, for commission, money, profit, or other thing of value, sells, exchanges, buys, or offers for sale, negotiates, or attempts to negotiate, a sale, or exchange of an interest in a vehicle required to be registered under this code.
(2) Induces or attempts to induce any person to buy or exchange an interest in a vehicle required to be registered, and who receives or expects to receive a commission, money, brokerage fees, profit, or any other thing of value, from either the seller or purchaser of the vehicle.
(3) Exercises managerial control over the business of a licensed vehicle dealer or who supervises vehicle salespersons employed by a licensed dealer, whether compensated by salary or commission, including, but not limited to, any person who is employed by the dealer as a general manager, assistant general manager, or sales manager, or any employee of a licensed vehicle dealer who negotiates with or induces a customer to enter into a security agreement or purchase agreement or purchase order for the sale of a vehicle on behalf of the licensed vehicle dealer.
(b) The term “vehicle salesperson” does not include any of the following:
(1) Representatives of insurance companies, finance companies, or public officials, who in the regular course of business, are required to dispose of or sell vehicles under a contractual right or obligation of the employer, or in the performance of an official duty, or under the authority of any court of law, if the sale is for the purpose of saving the seller from any loss or pursuant to the authority of a court of competent jurisdiction.
(2) Persons who are licensed as a manufacturer, remanufacturer, transporter, distributor, or representative.
(3) Persons exclusively employed in a bona fide business of exporting vehicles, or of soliciting orders for the sale and delivery of vehicles outside the territorial limits of the United States.
(4) Persons not engaged in the purchase or sale of vehicles as a business, disposing of vehicles acquired for their own use, or for use in their business when the vehicles have been so acquired and used in good faith, and not for the purpose of avoiding the provisions of this code.
(5) Persons regularly employed as salespersons by persons who are engaged in a business involving the purchase, sale, or exchange of boat trailers.
(6) Persons regularly employed as salespersons by persons who are engaged in a business activity which does not involve the purchase, sale, or exchange of vehicles, except incidentally in connection with the purchase, sale, or exchange of vehicles of a type not subject to registration under this code, boat trailers, or midget autos or racers advertised as being built exclusively for use by children.
(7) Persons licensed as a vehicle dealer under this code doing business as a sole ownership or member of a partnership or a stockholder and director of a corporation or a member and manager of a limited liability company licensed as a vehicle dealer under this code. However, those persons shall engage in the activities of a salesperson, as defined in this section, exclusively on behalf of the sole ownership or partnership or corporation or limited liability company in which they own an interest or stock, and those persons owning stock shall be directors of the corporation; otherwise, they are vehicle salespersons and subject to Article 2 (commencing with Section 11800) of Chapter 4 of Division 5.
(8) Persons regularly employed as salespersons by a vehicle dealer authorized to do business in California under Section 11700.1 of the Vehicle Code.
(Amended by Stats. 1994, Ch. 1200, Sec. 92. Effective September 30, 1994.)