You must maintain your vehicle registration on an annual basis. Owners are responsible for inspecting and renewing their vehicle’s registration annually and attaching the vehicle tags. Nevertheless, if you fail to renew your registration in time or damage your vehicle tags, police may stop your vehicle.
The most common consequences are a warning, a fine, and possibly having your car towed or impounded. If your registration is out-of-date or your vehicle appears unsafe, you will likely face penalties.
The good news is there are several ways to avoid or reduce the penalties associated with expired registration tickets. Let’s take a closer look at how driving with expired tags is terrible for you and how you can reduce the related penalties.
How does driving with expired tags violate the law?
You must renew your car registration annually with your state’s Department of Motor Vehicles. As a matter of fact, tags serve as proof of registration and taxation of a vehicle.
The law requires you to register your vehicle, hold a driver’s license, and maintain a valid car insurance policy. Even if you don’t drive and just keep the vehicle parked in the open, the police can still fine you because of expired tags. For further information regarding vehicle registration, we suggest you visit swift-tags.com.
Driving With Expired Tags Can Result in several Penalties.
Renewals less than six months late are not usually a problem, but anything more than this period can have serious consequences.
● A Warning or a Ticket
In most cases, the officer will issue a warning or citation if your registration is less than six months expired. The fines and penalties will increase if the expired registration is more than six months old.
● Impoundment or Towing of Your Vehicle
You may have your vehicle towed or impounded if you didn’t renew your registration in time. The same applies if you have been cited more than once for not applying your new license plate tags.
● A Hefty Fine For an Expired Registration
If your registration expires, you may be subject to fines starting at $100 and reaching thousands. Although the minimum fine starts at $100, different surcharges, such as a tax multiplier, add to the cost and take it to $200. Additionally, you may need to pay court surcharges. Keeping your vehicle’s registration expired or receiving citations for expired tags will only increase costs.
● Jail Time
If a driver’s registration has expired for a long period and there have been multiple violations, they may have to spend up to 15 days in jail.
● Hearing in Court
Even if you resolve it with your tags or registration, you may have to face a court hearing if your citation requires it. There isn’t a choice whether you should attend or not; you have to. However, if you renew your registration and pay the dismissal fee, you may be able to have your ticket dismissed.
What To Do if You Are Caught With Elapsed Registration Tags?
Do not freak out if a police officer stops you because your registration tags have expired. By acting sensibly, you can certainly lessen the costs even if you cannot come out clean from the situation. Reduce the penalties associated with a vehicle registration ticket by using the following techniques.
● Show That Your Vehicle Registration Is Up-to-Date
If you have registered your vehicle but don’t have the new tag pasted on your vehicle, you can prove it. Even if the officer issues a ticket, it will not stick because you already registered your car.
Present online registration to police: If you have a phone and mobile data, you can open your email account and show the officer your current registration proof. The officer would be able to verify if you are showing them the original proof of registration.
Provide a copy of the corrected document: You may submit a Proof of Correction form later if you cannot prove your vehicle registration. Ticket dismissal will occur once the court verifies your current registration. You may still be required to appear in court.
Final Thoughts
If you wish to preserve your driving privileges and keep your driving record clean, it is critical to renew your expired tags. Driving with expired tags can result in hefty fines and even jail time. Nobody wants that to happen. Once your car registration has expired, make sure to renew it within six months of the expiration date to avoid all penalties and fines we have discussed in this blog post.
