The Importance of Registering Your Car
So you’ve just bought your first car and you’re excited to take it on the road, now what? Normally, you’d think you can just drive it off the lot or leave the seller’s driveway and get on cruising, but it’s a little more complicated than that. Vehicles are a lot of work outside of the maintenance and driving rules, there’s plenty of paperwork that goes along with having your own car so it’s good to know how to do it and why you need to.
The best thing to know about owning a car is that doing your homework before buying one is good. Again, not just so you know where the transmission is, but what registering the vehicle is too. Registering your vehicle is one of those necessary parts of paperwork that you have to do, so here is how to do it for those first-time car owners, and the importance of it for people who don’t understand why it’s a crucial piece of owning a vehicle.
What to Do When You First Buy a Car
Whether you buy from a dealer or private seller, there are some good things to do when you first get behind the wheel, and even more so before that. Obviously, you have to ensure that you are a licensed driver to legally drive it. You can buy a vehicle without having a license, however, and loans are actually possible to obtain from a bank to finance a car, you just can’t drive it. Assuming you have your license, you’ll need to get insurance as well to legally drive the vehicle without the risk of penalty or license suspension from an officer.
You also need to visit your local DMV to get it registered. Registering your vehicle allows them to have a file on your car to maintain the legitimacy of your ownership and protect you from certain penalties. You can go into the DMV to do it in person, or online resources at https://www.quickautotags.com can help with the online process, which is becoming a preferred method due to convenience. In any case, you should have the important documents ready and kept in a folder or somewhere you can remember. Things like your license number, your plate number, the VIN number, proof of sale/purchase, etc. Make sure to do this as soon as possible when buying a vehicle.
Registering at a Dealer vs. From a Private Seller
There is also a difference between registering your car when you buy it from a dealer or buying it off of a private ad or from a friend. The dealership is where most people assume they’ll buy their first car, and it has its advantages. Buying new is good because you know it has no wear or tear on it, but also the fact that dealers can help with the registration because they have all the paperwork ready when you bought the car.
When you buy from a private seller, you have to do more of the steps on your own. Contacting the DMV, getting the proof of purchase from the seller, etc. so it’s up to you to be responsible and get all the information so you can register the car hassle-free.
Why Registration Is So Important
As you know by now, registering a car is a step in the car-owning process which legitimizes your claim to the title of the car. It allows you to drive on public property (public roads) and makes sure that the DMV, government, insurance companies, and law enforcement know that you are the legal owner and operator of a car. It might not be fun, but it’s necessary.
How to Renew Your Cars Registration
Renewing a car registration is easy too. You will usually need to register the car every 1 or 2 years, but it depends on the state and other rules. The renewal process goes through the DMV just the same as registering. You can do it online or in-person, and you’ll need to provide similar documents for them to process the registration. They won’t require proof of purchase or first-time documents because they’ll already have the car on file. It’s a quick and simple process but it’s good to remember when you’ll be required to renew it.
Driving instructors, friends, and family will all help you learn about driving and having a car, but one thing that they likely fail to mention is how much paperwork you’ll need to sift through. Registering your car isn’t a glamorous process and not many people will say they like it, but it’s important for many reasons which are why you need to know about it.