Bristol Township, PA Business Licensing & Operations: Secondhand Dealers (2026)

Section 142-4 of the Bristol Township Code defines who is covered. A dealer is a pawnbroker, precious metals dealer, antique dealer and/or secondhand dealer. A secondhand dealer or antique dealer is an individual, partnership, association, corporation or other business entity, including an itinerant merchant, doing business in Bristol Township that purchases or makes appraisals of secondhand or used goods for resale or refining, or an individual who acts as an agent for such a business. A secondhand or used good is one being purchased by or otherwise transferred to a second or later end user.

Being a dealer triggers the chapter's duties. Under § 142-5 no person can act as a dealer without a license from the Bristol Township Licenses and Inspections Department for each location, and an annual registration license fee for each location, set by resolution of Council. Records of every transaction must include date, time, location, make, model, serial number, a detailed description, color, special markings, the currency amount paid and a photocopy of the seller's government identification, and copies are kept at the business for two years (§ 142-6). A color photograph is required for items without proper identifiable marks or numbers.

Items must be kept unaltered and available to law enforcement for 10 working days, meaning Monday through Friday excluding holidays, and segregated from inventory offered for sale. An item held off the premises must be available for inspection within 24 hours of a request (§ 142-11). Dealers upload each day's transactions to the Township's electronic tracking system by the end of each business day (§ 142-10). Transactions with minors under 18 are prohibited (§ 142-12). Section 142-3 excludes sales of goods whose proceeds go to charitable, religious, educational, philanthropic or civic service organizations, and purchases at garage sales or yard sales.