West Virginia Pawn Software for Article 26

West Virginia regulates pawnbrokers under Article 26

West Virginia pawnbroker law is governed by Chapter 47, Article 26 of the West Virginia Code, which sets out detailed definitions, comprehensive transaction-record requirements, prohibited transactions, and — effective January 1, 2025 — mandatory video surveillance for all pawn shops. Counties and municipalities may add stricter requirements under §47-26-4, so long as they don't fall below state law. Pawn software for West Virginia captures and retains the records this statute requires and keeps them ready for a law-enforcement inspection.

PawnSmarts is a recordkeeping system. It captures and exports the data the law requires, but it does not interpret West Virginia law or determine your compliance status — you remain responsible for configuring it to your obligations and for submitting correct information to state and local authorities.

PawnSmarts is month to month at $89/month (Essential) or $129/month (Professional), with no contract and no setup fee, or own Professional outright for a one-time $2,995. We migrate your data for a one-time $395 and you're live in under 24 hours.

Key definitions — §47-26-1

Pawnbroker: any person, partnership, association or corporation advancing money in a pawn transaction in exchange for collateral in the property of the pledgor. Banks, credit unions and licensed finance companies are excluded.

Pawn transaction: a transaction in which the pledgor's property is placed in the pawnbroker's possession as security for money or other valuable consideration, with the condition that the pledgor may pay a pawn charge and redeem the property within a predetermined time. Transactions using securities, titles or printed evidence of indebtedness as security are excluded.

Purchase transaction: the transfer and delivery of goods to a pawnbroker by acquisition for value, consignment or trade for other goods. Purchases of items not used or intended for resale, consignment or trade are excluded.

Transaction records — §47-26-2

Section 47-26-2 sets comprehensive recordkeeping requirements for every purchase and pawn transaction. PawnSmarts gives each required element its own field:

• Date of the transaction
• Name of the seller or pledgor
• Name of the clerk who handled the transaction
• Corresponding pawn ticket number
• Terms of the loan or purchase
• A copy of the seller's or pledgor's government photo ID and type — or, if they have no government-issued photo ID, a photograph of the seller or pledgor
• A detailed description of the property

Detailed description requirements:

• Firearms: brand, model, caliber, type and serial number
• Jewelry: type, karat weight, whether white gold, yellow gold or other precious metals, and a description of stones, shape, cut and oddities sufficient to describe the article
• Other articles: type, brand, model, serial number or other identifying information sufficient to specifically describe the item

Signature and ownership affirmation: the seller or pledgor signs the transaction statement, and a signed statement affirming ownership appears on the bill of sale or pawn ticket completed at the time of the transaction.

Record retention: the original of all purchase or pawn transaction statements must be kept for three years and made available for inspection by law-enforcement officers during posted business hours. PawnSmarts stores your transaction history securely and keeps it retrievable for the retention period.

Confidentiality: transaction information is confidential and not public record, but this does not impede the pawnbroker's duty to accurately collect and timely provide information to law enforcement.

Prohibited transactions — §47-26-2a

A pawnbroker may not purchase, accept in pawn, receive in trade or exchange for goods:

• Articles from a minor
• Articles from a person who appears intoxicated or under the influence of a controlled substance at the time of the transaction
• Articles the pawnbroker knows or has reason to believe are stolen
• A general-use prepaid gift card, store gift card, store credit, merchandise card, gift certificate, activated phone card or similar item
• Property with serial numbers, personalized inscriptions or initials, or other identifying marks the pawnbroker knows or has reason to believe have been intentionally altered or rendered illegible

PawnSmarts records the item details and ID you collect, but it cannot inspect an item or judge a customer for you — staff must know the law and look.

County and municipal authority — §47-26-4

Article 26 does not prevent a county or municipality from adopting an ordinance with additional requirements, as long as the ordinance does not conflict with or create lesser requirements than state law. Where a local ordinance establishes reporting to local law enforcement, the pawnbroker is not required to provide duplicate information to other law-enforcement officials under §47-26-3. In practice, local governments may impose stricter rules — more frequent reporting or extra record fields — as long as they're not weaker than state law.

Local considerations by jurisdiction: Elkins (Randolph County), Charleston (Kanawha County, contact Charleston PD), Huntington (Cabell County), Morgantown (Monongalia County), Parkersburg (Wood County), and Wheeling (Ohio County) each may have local reporting requirements; for unincorporated areas, county commissions may have adopted ordinances under §47-26-4. Confirm current licensing and reporting obligations with the city or county where you operate.

Penalties — §47-26-3

A pawnbroker who violates Article 26 is guilty of a misdemeanor and, on conviction, shall be fined not less than $250 and not more than $1,000 for each offense. A pawnbroker convicted of a third violation within a two-year period shall be confined in jail for up to 30 days in addition to the fine.

Reporting, the MLA, and sales tax

Police reporting: West Virginia has no single statewide electronic reporting mandate. Reporting is established locally under §47-26-4, and state law requires records be made available to law enforcement on request. Some municipalities accept electronic submissions; others may require paper. PawnSmarts exports transaction data and supports LEADS Online; if your local agency provides a file layout, you can configure the export to match. PawnSmarts charges no per-report or per-transaction fee — local licensing fees, if any, are paid directly to the city or county.

Military Lending Act (36% APR cap): the federal MLA applies to pawn transactions with covered borrowers (active-duty service members and their dependents), capping APR — including pawn service charges — at 36%. Covered status is verified through the free DMDC portal at or before the transaction, and proof must be retained. PawnSmarts does not automatically verify MLA status or enforce rate caps; you may record DMDC confirmation numbers and attach screenshots or PDFs to the customer record, and you remain responsible for compliance.

Sales tax on forfeited goods (W. Va. Code R. §110-15-61): if the pledgor redeems, the pawnbroker's charge is treated as interest and is not subject to sales tax. If the pledgor does not redeem, title passes to the pawnbroker, and the later resale of the article is a sale subject to sales and service tax.

Compatible hardware

PawnSmarts works with common off-the-shelf peripherals — no proprietary hardware required. Use any Windows printer or a thermal label printer (Zebra, Dymo, TSC, Godex), 1D/2D driver's-license and document scanners, SecuGen fingerprint devices, cash drawers, Topaz signature pads, and USB/microscope/IP cameras for item and customer imaging. ID scanning and webcam capture help you meet the §47-26-2 requirement for a copy of government photo ID or a photograph of the customer when no ID is presented.

Compare PawnSmarts to other systems including Bravo, HiTech, PawnMaster and Pawndex on our comparison page, learn the basics in what is pawn shop software, or browse the other states we serve.

Frequently Asked Questions