Expired Registration

[petedee]

What is the name of your state (only U.S. law)? Massachusetts

My husband was pulled over today and given a $100 citation for operating a vehicle with an expired registration (expired 5/31/11, citation given 6/21/11). We recently sold our home and are currently building a new home and have been staying in a few temporary locations until the home is built so we did not have a permanent address to provide the DMV so we had not changed our address. He was also given a $35 citation for not changing our address with the DMV. We have been having our mail forwarded to a PO Box but in any event, we did not receive his renewal form in the mail probably due to all the moving around. The officer did not want to listen to the reasonig and ordered my husband out of the truck and into a tow truck that was waiting near by. They then proceeded to tow and impound my husbands truck for driving an unregistered vehicle! They would not release the vehicle until we showed up with the new registration and new sticker. I went to the RMV right away and renewed the registration and we went down to pick up the truck within a few hours. They charged us $166 payable only in cash. This seems incredibly extreme not to mention shady!!! I cannot find anywhere in the traffic laws posted on-line that the law says the vehcile will be towed at owner's expense. Do we have any recourse here?

 

[Willlyjo]

What is the name of your state (only U.S. law)? Massachusetts

My husband was pulled over today and given a $100 citation for operating a vehicle with an expired registration (expired 5/31/11, citation given 6/21/11). We recently sold our home and are currently building a new home and have been staying in a few temporary locations until the home is built so we did not have a permanent address to provide the DMV so we had not changed our address. He was also given a $35 citation for not changing our address with the DMV. We have been having our mail forwarded to a PO Box but in any event, we did not receive his renewal form in the mail probably due to all the moving around. The officer did not want to listen to the reasonig and ordered my husband out of the truck and into a tow truck that was waiting near by. They then proceeded to tow and impound my husbands truck for driving an unregistered vehicle! They would not release the vehicle until we showed up with the new registration and new sticker. I went to the RMV right away and renewed the registration and we went down to pick up the truck within a few hours. They charged us $166 payable only in cash. This seems incredibly extreme not to mention shady!!! I cannot find anywhere in the traffic laws posted on-line that the law says the vehcile will be towed at owner's expense. Do we have any recourse here?

I'm sorry but you really don't. The problem is that you didn't make arrangements that would enable you to recieve important mail in a fashion that would have allowed you to avoid the ticket(s). I agree, there is lots of shady activity committed by the system, but we must do our best to not get caught up as a victim and that starts by making sure your tags are updated when they are due to be updated.

 

[justalayman]

who do you believe should be liable for the tow when your vehicle was being illegally driven on the road?

and the argument about moving and you didn't get the notice is irrelevant. There is no duty to hold your hand and remind you your registration is about to expire. It expires the same date every year. It is your responsibility to be aware of when it will expire and take care of it before it expires.

 

[petedee]

Thank you for the responses.

Registrations get renewed every two years in MA, not every year.

We are honest, hard working, tax paying citizens of this state. We have been driving for over 25 years and have done well keeping our bills & taxes paid on time and our records in order. Unfortunately, we are not perfect, no one is. Yes, Shame on us for not noticing the little 1"X1" sticker on the back of our car expired 21 days ago. It was an honest oversight. Making sure that little sticker is still in effect isn't something you think about everyday. $300 seems excessive for a paperwork mishap to me. I think some criminal offenses carry less of a fine.

I have found where the law says there is a $100 fine for operating an unregistered vehicle. I have also found where the law says it's a $35 fine for not notifying the DMV of an address change. I cannot find where the law says your vehicle will be towed and impounded at the owner's expense. Does anyone know where it says this is the law?

 

[justalayman]

You car was towed because it could not legally be operated, or even parked, on a public roadway. Just what do you suppose they should have done with your vehicle? Let you drive it away, illegally? They couldn't leave it parked on the public roadway because that, too, is illegal so, either they tow it or you tow it.

Either way, it's your cost.

. It was an honest oversight.

Nobody has said anything otherwise but just as it was an honest oversight, the cops are simply enforcing the law. In the words of Don Lucchesi in the Godfather part 3: "it's not personal. It's just business".

.

Making sure that little sticker is still in effect isn't something you think about everyday.

You only have to think about it once every 730 days. Not much to ask, is it? I have to think about it twice each year having multiple cars where the registration expires on different dates and for some reason I seem to get the job done.

You are really making this out to be much more than it is. You made a mistake. You were caught driving illegally and there is a (relatively small I believe) penalty for doing it. It's time to move on.

 

[petedee]

Congratulations to you for keeping your registration always up to date! Great Job!

My problem isn't so much with the actual citation, it's the towing and impounding fees. Many years ago when I was a new driver I received a citation for an expired inspection sticker but my car was not towed and they let me drive away with the stipulation I would get the car inspected within 7 days which I did. So wasn't I allowed to drive away with a car that was on the road illegally?

 

[davew128]

Many years ago when I was a new driver I received a citation for an expired inspection sticker but my car was not towed and they let me drive away with the stipulation I would get the car inspected within 7 days which I did. So wasn't I allowed to drive away with a car that was on the road illegally?

Because an inspection sticker in Mass is a moving violation only with regards to failure to have the car inspected while on the road. The registration means the car may not be operated on the vehicle PERIOD. They are not the same and having had both tickets in Mass when I was much younger, I had the same results for both that you did.

 

[justalayman]

My problem isn't so much with the actual citation, it's the towing and impounding fees. So wasn't I allowed to drive away with a car that was on the road illegally?

the police could have let you drive away. They could have let you do a lot of things. The fact that remains is; they were not bound to do anything. What they did was completely legitimate.

Some areas of the country are less lenient than others. Some cops are more lenient than others. You apparently ran across cop that was not in a lenient mood and as such, took all the actions available.

 

[Willlyjo]

Congratulations to you for keeping your registration always up to date! Great Job!

My problem isn't so much with the actual citation, it's the towing and impounding fees. Many years ago when I was a new driver I received a citation for an expired inspection sticker but my car was not towed and they let me drive away with the stipulation I would get the car inspected within 7 days which I did. So wasn't I allowed to drive away with a car that was on the road illegally?

I agree with you that being towed away after such a small length of time past the due date to renew is a greedy thing to do. But it is all about money--something that many cities and states are low on. In California, a car that has tags that need to be updated, don't get towed away until like 3 months after the expiration date.

Cops out here would just give you a ticket that allows you to renew and show the court that you've done so and then you would pay like a 25.00 processing fee. I really sympathize with you that you were towed after only 21 days past expiration though.

 

[Zigner]

I agree with you that being towed away after such a small length of time past the due date to renew is a greedy thing to do. But it is all about money--something that many cities and states are low on. In California, a car that has tags that need to be updated, don't get towed away until like 3 months after the expiration date.

Post a cite to the law in California saying that a vehicle cannot be towed until 3 months after the expiration date.

 

[LillianX]

the police could have let you drive away. They could have let you do a lot of things. The fact that remains is; they were not bound to do anything. What they did was completely legitimate.

Some areas of the country are less lenient than others. Some cops are more lenient than others. You apparently ran across cop that was not in a lenient mood and as such, took all the actions available.

Verifying this. I live in MA, and we got a bit lazy with our car registration last month. The first time, we just got a ticket. The second time, the car was towed. It's perfectly legal to tow the car. It's also perfectly legal for the officer to give you a break and let you go with just a ticket.

 

[CdwJava]

Post a cite to the law in California saying that a vehicle cannot be towed until 3 months after the expiration date.

Actually, in CA the vehicle would have to be expired for 6 months per CVC 22651(o).

We cannot tow for a vehicle expired for just a single month.

 

[Zigner]

Actually, in CA the vehicle would have to be expired for 6 months per CVC 22651(o).

We cannot tow for a vehicle expired for just a single month.

Thanks Carl - we both will stand corrected

 

[Willlyjo]

Actually, in CA the vehicle would have to be expired for 6 months per CVC 22651(o).

We cannot tow for a vehicle expired for just a single month.

Thanks CdwJava! I was sure it was 180 days as well but responding off the top of my head, I thought it would be safe to say 3 months.

 

[Willlyjo]

Thanks Carl - we both will stand corrected

I don't think so! You will stand corrected. I gave an approximate (not exact) timeframe to avoid towing in Ca. for expired tags. I was sure it was 6 months but to be safe I said it was "like 3 months". Surely much more reasonable than the 21 days that resulted in the OP's vehicle getting towed.

As far as listing a cite to the law, I don't always have to. I have a right to give my opinion based on my experience and it was my experience that my car couldn't be towed for a certain length of time after which the tags have expired in California. My post was accurate, so you have no cause what-so-ever to confront me about it.

Now go stalk someone else's posts--you are annoying me.