How to fill out North Dakota SFN 18609

North Dakota is one of a small number of states that makes a private seller sign a separate body-damage disclosure for almost every modern car. The form's first line is the rule: it must be completed by the transferor (seller) for all vehicles less than nine (9) model years old, signed by the seller, given to and signed by the buyer, and it must accompany the application for title. Three numbered questions step down through the severity of any damage in the past eight years, and a false statement on it is a Class A Misdemeanor.

Written against SFN 18609 (4-2026), issued under NDCC 39-05-17.2 and 39-05-20.2 with NDAC 37-09-01-02, all three cited on the face of the form. The penalty on this form sits directly under the damage explanation box, and it is heavier than most of the department's: any person who makes a false statement on this form is guilty of a Class A Misdemeanor. It is not a form to complete optimistically. If you genuinely do not know whether a repair before your ownership crossed the 25 percent line, the honest answers are on 3A - I acquired the vehicle with unrepaired damage, or damage occurred prior to my ownership and I acquired it in a repaired condition - which is exactly what those options are for.

Two documents, and they are not the same thing. Take the blank SFN 18609 from the dot.nd.gov copy so you get the revision that is current today, then print our SFN 18609 guide and keep it beside you while you fill theirs in.

Every line, in the order you meet it

1. 1
   You fill this in

   The vehicle rows

   Year, make, model and style, then the vehicle identification number and title number.

   Watch out: Style means body style - the department's own word for it on this form - and it should match what the certificate of title says rather than what the manufacturer's brochure said.

2. 2
   You fill this in

   VIN and title number

   Both copied from the face of the certificate.

   Watch out: This sheet is filed with the title application, so a transposed digit here is a mismatch the counter finds immediately.

3. 3
   You fill this in

   Section 1, the eight-year question

   Yes or No: body or structural damage from a crash or accident in the past eight years, including loss by fire, vandalism, weather or submersion in water.

   Watch out: Read the exclusions printed under it before you answer. Glass damage, hail damage, modifications and normal maintenance and repair are not damage for this purpose - a stone chip and a replaced windscreen do not make this a Yes.

4. 4
   You fill this in

   Section 2, the 25 percent test

   Only reached after a Yes above. Do the damages equal or exceed the greater of $10,000 or 25 percent of the pre-damage retail value on the NADA guide?

   Watch out: Work the formula on page two rather than eyeballing it - the worked examples show a $7,000 repair on a $15,000 car answering No and a $13,000 repair on a $50,000 car answering Yes.

5. 5
   You fill this in

   Section 3, and the 3A and 3B blocks under it

   Whether the damage exceeded 75 percent of retail value, then which of the four ownership situations applies and every type of damage that applies, with a brief explanation.

   Watch out: A Yes here means the vehicle is in the salvage system, not the ordinary sale system, and the department's own example of an Other in 3A is a title already branded for the damage disclosed above.

6. 6
   You fill this in

   Section 4, your name and address

   Name of the transferor, daytime telephone number, mailing address, city, state and ZIP code.

   Watch out: The department's instruction for this section is that seller information is to be completed in full - a partial address is a reason to send the form back.

7. 7
   You fill this in

   Section 4, your signature and date

   Sign and date it. Your signature is what makes the disclosure a disclosure.

   Watch out: The Class A Misdemeanor warning printed just above this line applies to what you signed, not to what you meant. If an answer is uncertain, say so in the explanation box rather than picking the easier box.

8. 8
   The buyer fills this in

   Section 5, the buyer's block

   The buyer's name, telephone, address, signature and date - required only where the seller answered Yes to any of the questions above.

   Watch out: If every answer above was No, leave it empty. Filling it in anyway is not helpful; it is a set of entries on a form the instructions say does not need them.

What gets this one rejected

• •Skipping it because the car has never been in an accident. The form is required on every vehicle under the age threshold, not only damaged ones - a No in Section 1 is still a completed disclosure and the title application travels with it.
• •Answering Yes to Section 1 for a hailed roof or a cracked windscreen. The definition printed under the question excludes glass damage and hail damage outright, along with modifications and normal maintenance and repair.
• •Guessing at Section 2 instead of working the formula. The instruction page sets it out in four steps: take 25 percent of the retail value at the time of the damage, compare it with $10,000, take whichever is higher, and answer Yes only if the assessed damage exceeds that figure.
• •Leaving 3A and 3B blank after a Yes in Section 3. The instructions require both - one option that best describes the ownership situation, and every damage type that applies with a brief explanation.
• •Handing the buyer a form with an empty Section 5 after answering Yes to anything. The header makes the buyer's signature part of the document in that case, and the title application needs the completed sheet.

Rules that decide whether it is accepted

• •Nine model years is the current model year plus the eight before it. The form's threshold and its eight-year damage window are two different measurements, which is why both numbers appear. The age test decides whether you complete the form at all; the eight years decides what you are being asked about.
• •The 75 percent answer changes what the vehicle is. The instruction page states the consequence: a vehicle damaged in excess of 75 percent may not be operated on North Dakota highways unless it has been reconstructed and inspected by a business registered with the Secretary of State, and the business completing the inspection may not be the same business that reconstructed the vehicle.
• •A brand, once earned, does not age off. Salvage requirements apply to all model year vehicles and all brands must be carried forward regardless of the age of the vehicle - printed in the instructions, and the reason a much older car can still carry the mark.
• •Assessed damage is a sum, not an estimate. The instructions define it: the amount of damage is determined by adding the retail value of all labor, parts, and materials used in repairing the damage. An invoice answers this question better than a memory does.

Every line here was read off SFN 18609 (4-2026) itself — the PDF is here — and off the North Dakota Department of Transportation, Motor Vehicle Division pages. This is plain-language help with a form, not legal advice, and where our wording and the agency's differ, theirs governs.

Back to all North Dakota seller paperwork, or what selling a car in North Dakota involves.