(a) To obtain a refund of fees and/or penalties erroneously paid to the department under this chapter, the applicant shall submit a written request for a refund, signed under penalty of perjury, which must include:

(b) For that portion of a year's annual renewal fees paid by a non-exempt owner, which relates to the period between the effective date of an exemption and the end of the registration year for which the fees were due or were paid, no refund or prorated reduction of those annual renewal fees will be made if the exemption becomes effective after the beginning of the registration year.

(c) The application for refund must be submitted within three years from the date the fees and/or penalties were paid.

(d) Any refund will be issued in the name of the requesting party.

(e) In the event that excess fees are submitted with an application to transfer, the department will refund the excess fees to the escrow or title company, or, if no escrow or title company was used for the transaction, to the payor.