Vehicle Acquisition Procedure

All vehicle acquisitions (purchases, gifts, and leases or rentals of more than 90 days) require the prior written approval of Fleet Services.

When you have finished researching a prospective vehicle acquisition, please send a request for Fleet Review to fleet@berkeley.edu.  Include the year; make; model; fuel type; price; the chart of accounts you wish Fleet to charge for registration, insurance, and maintenance (see Fleet Services Recharge Rates); and if the vehicle has already been manufactured, the VIN. If the acquisition is a purchase or lease, please cc: the Supply Chain Management authorized buyer who will be issuing your Purchase Order.

Fleet Services will review your request to ensure compliance with campus policy and federal emissions regulations.

Vehicle Choices

The campus has set a goal that all new (to us) vehicles must be EVs (electric), regardless of size or weight.  There are many choices available in all classes.  The only exceptions are those used actively in public safety (police).

Vehicle Color and Branding

  • The preferred exterior color of all service/utility vehicles is white. 
  • All service/utility vehicles must obtain University approved branding and signage through Fleet Services

Purchasing a Vehicle

Vehicle purchases must be approved by the campus' Fleet Administrator via Fleet Services (BFB-BUS 8, Section III A).  Only duly authorized (by Supply Chain Management) campus buyers are allowed to purchase vehicles (BFB-BUS 8, Section III B). When purchasing a new vehicle there are two options: (a) via the State of California contract, where the participating dealers are aware that the University of California, Berkeley registers its own vehicles and so do not fill-in those portions of the related forms or charge the campus for the registration or licensing fees; or (b) purchasing outside of the State contract and through non-participating dealers, who may not be knowledgeable or our ability to register/license our own vehicles, requiring our being vigilent of how they complete their portion of the registration documents

  • Work with the dealership's fleet sales department
  • Do not sign any contract or Application for Registration of New Vehicle (REG 397)

The process is for the campus buyer to create and provide the dealer with a Purchase Order.  The dealer is to then provide the campus with an invoice, which needs to be sent to Fleet Services to be scanned and retained.  DO NOT SIGN any portion of any document titled Power of Attorney (usually found at bottom section of REG 262, VEHICLE/VESSEL TRANSFER AND REASSIGNMENT).

  • Immediately provide Fleet Services with the vehicle specification sheet and the original dealer completed REG 397 (APPLICATION FOR REGISTRATION of NEW VEHICLE).

Registering/Licensing a Vehicle

  • The dealer should fill out and sign their portion of the REG 397 only, entering the "sold to" information as:

            UNIV CALIF FLEET SERVICES

            3200 REGATTA BLVD  STE E   RICHMOND   CA  94804

  • The original REG 397 must be sent to Fleet Services (same address).  Only the campus' Fleet Administrator is authorized to complete and sign the document, register the vehicle as exempt via our on-line portal and assign new exempt license plates from our in-house supply (BFB-BUS 46).  We then are required to send all of the original documents to the DMV.

The new license plates (2), registration card, insurance packet and door markings (2) may be picked up the day after the vehicle is registered.

State Vehicle Contracts (Note that we are aware of long delays)

The University encourages departments to use the State Contracts for purchasing vehicles.  A vehicle purchase must either use the appropriate contract, or else Fleet Services must certify that an exception to the contract applies. Some exceptions may include:
  • No vehicle on the state contract is adequate to the task
  • The requested vehicle has a lower overall cost than the equivalent state contract vehicle
  • The department requires that a vehicle be put in operation immediately; and the requested vehicle is available immediately while delivery on the equivalent state contract vehicle will be delayed; and the cost to rent a vehicle to bridge the interim period, when added to the cost of the state contract vehicle, exceeds the cost of the requested vehicle
  • The requested vehicle, when compared to the equivalent state contract vehicle, allows a more cost-effective realization of our sustainable transportation goals

Using the State Contract (Note that we are aware of long delays)

  1. Go to the State Contract website, click on Quicklinks at the top of the page, click on "View/Search Contracts", type "Fleet Vehicles" into the Description field, and click Search
  2. To examine one of the listed contracts, click View
  3. This step is very important and easy to miss: Click View All in the Attachments area
  4. Open Attachment A--Contract Pricing
  5. Direct questions about the vehicles, equipment options, expected delivery date, and so forth to the dealer. For contact information, look for the document called supplier ref.pdf.
  6. When you have determined you wish to purchase a vehicle on the state contract, send your request for Fleet Review to the Fleet Administrator as described in the first paragraph of this document
  7. Create a purchase requisition as you would for any other piece of inventorial equipment. Your requisition must include the contract number, item number (or product code), make, model, price, and dealer name.
  8. Do not forget to indicate interior and exterior colors of the vehicle. If you do not specify, the vehicle will probably have a white exterior and gray interior, but no guarantees.
  9. Attach your approved Fleet Review to the requisition as an internal attachment.
  10. If Fleet approved your request, your buyer will issue the Purchase Order. There is a standard clause on all of our vehicle orders that instructs the vendor to provide registration paperwork to Fleet Services. If, by mistake, you receive any registration materials, please send them to Fleet Services immediately.
  11. The dealer must receive the order before the appropriate cut-off date. State contract cut-off dates are established by the manufacturer, and vary according to make and model. Contact the dealer for the most accurate information on cut-off dates.
  12. If you're not sure whether the dealer is going to receive the official P.O. before manufacturer cut-off, contact the dealer and contact Fleet.
  13. There is usually a substantial delay between the ordering period and delivery. The contract states that vehicles are to be delivered within 150 days of the placement of the order.
  14. In some cases, the payment terms call for a prompt payment discount of $500 per vehicle if the invoice is paid with 20 days of delivery. To qualify for the discount, departments should be prepared to process these invoices quickly upon receipt.

Acquiring a Used Vehicle

Generally, the procedures for new and used vehicles are the same. You must send a request for Fleet Review as described above. The vehicle must adhere to EPAct. For a purchase, Fleet will compare the price of the requested vehicle against the equivalent state contract vehicle. In addition, the vehicle must pass emissions testing as well as a safety inspection before it is accepted as a University vehicle. The safety inspection may be performed at one of our regular service vendors, or if purchased from a dealer, the dealership may complete the inspection.