So my mom's car has been parked in my garage for almost the past year since she's been out of the country. Her inspection/registration is due end of this month but she won't be back in the country yet. And when she comes back, she's thinking of selling the car.

So she told me not to bother getting it inspected/registered or renewing insurance since it just sits in the garage. It has a lot of problems that need fixing before it'll pass the inspection.

Any consequences of this? Will she get fined when inspection/registration is past due? And when insurance lapses? Any tips? Thanks!

[Edited on October 12, 2012 at 11:42 AM. Reason : k]

10/12/2012 11:41:29 AM

Get the insurance renewed unless you plan on turning the tags in.

The registration isn't a big deal - The insurance is.

10/12/2012 11:43:53 AM

I can't figure out what's dependent on what. So I have to renew the insurance even though the car will just sit there?

10/12/2012 11:56:40 AM

You have to renew your insurance in order to keep the tags. You can call your insurance agent and explain the situation, they will lower your rate while the car is not being utilized. You can then let the registration expire. If you think your mom will be selling the car as-is immidiately upon her return, it's better just to turn in the plates and cancel the insurance policy. Car doesn't need to be tagged and registeres in order to be legally sold.

10/12/2012 12:59:19 PM

if the car needs work and she plans to sell it (which i'm assuming its an older car worth only a few grand), cancel the insurance and turn the tags in just like igor said. The only reason I'd keep insurance, but turn the tags in is if its a newer age car that's still worth a pretty penny in case of damage or stolen.

10/12/2012 1:11:28 PM

I really hope your mom adjusted the insurance before she left, otherwise that's just throwing money away.

10/12/2012 1:22:20 PM

Also, keep in mind, if you let your insurance lapse these days the DMV (whether they follow through with it or not is another story) is supposed to automatically fine you.

10/12/2012 1:35:06 PM

Thanks everyone for the feedback. So I can maintain minimal insurance in order to keep the tags? But I can let the registration/inspection expire and it won't affect the tags?

If that's the case, I think I'll try to maintain the insurance but at the lowest rate possible since no one is driving it. She has no idea if she's going to sell it, but that's what we're all convincing her to do but she doesn't want to decide now. And I don't have time to fix her car to get it inspected.

Unfortunately I have been throwing insurance money away this past year thinking I needed coverage since I was going to drive it occassionally but turns out it has just sat in the garage. And she didn't plan on being overseas for the entire year.

The car is worth prob around $8K. I'm not afraid of it getting stolen, it's locked in a secure garage.

10/12/2012 2:26:38 PM

To keep the tag, you'll have to carry at least basic liability insurance, which is probably $180/six months. If you keep the tag they assume you're going to drive the car.

If you don't plan on driving the car, turn in the tag at the DMV. Cancel the insurance. If you want you can insure the car for damage that may occur in the garage, but that's between you and the insurance company and has nothing to do with the DMV.

The registration will remain in her name. You still have to pay any taxes at the state and county level, including highway use tax, whether the car is on the highway or not. These taxes should be tied to the license tag, in my opinion, but they're not, so whatcha gonna do.

10/12/2012 2:58:39 PM

Quote :

"Also, keep in mind, if you let your insurance lapse these days the DMV (whether they follow through with it or not is another story) is supposed to automatically fine you."

That is correct, I sold a motorcycle that I kept forgetting to turn the tag in for a few weeks and got a nice letter saying I owed a civil penalty of $50. Went and turned the tag in a few days later and they dropped the fine.

10/12/2012 4:52:51 PM

So keeping the tags and paying the vehicle tax is not dependent on keeping the car up to date on the registration/inspection? As long as I keep insurance up to date I'm fine?

What I'm fearing is them imposing some kind of fine when they realize the car didn't get annual registration/inspection done. Or they'll realize this when they issue the yearly vehicle tax. Or they'll realize this whenever I get the registration/inspection back up to date some months from now.

[Edited on October 12, 2012 at 5:05 PM. Reason : k]

10/12/2012 5:04:06 PM

You can't renew your tags if the inspection is out of date. They changed it recently and are much more aggressive with people who are too lax about their car inspection while your car has the overlap period of still being tagged for driving.

Honestly, if no one is driving it right now for the near future, just cancel your insurance and turn the tags in on Monday. It'll save you some money in the short run and really not that difficult to get new insurance or tags months from now, unless your inspection is out of date and the car won't pass without a major overhaul.

10/12/2012 5:41:18 PM

DEATH

10/12/2012 7:24:18 PM

Another option is to add your mom to your own insurance policy then cancel the insurance on the vehicle/surrender the tags. Insurance rates are strongly based on credit score and continuos coverage - your mom will have a much higher rate when she comes home if she hasn't maintained stateside coverage on someone's policy.

10/12/2012 7:30:44 PM

If I cancel the insurance and return the tags, I'm off the hook for everything right? And it's still ok to sell it without tags?

But if she decides to keep the car and drive it, I just need to get new tags again and get it fixed/inspected right? Will it cost more to reapply for tags? I guess the cost savings from insurance will offset it.

10/12/2012 10:28:41 PM

Yes, you can still sell a car without plates or tags as long as you have the title of the car. You just get the ownership changed, they go to the dmv and get their new tags for the car, put it on and drive away (assuming inspection is good).

Honestly, if registration ends at the end of this month, then its of no consequence to turn it now. It shouldn't cost you that much more to get new tags, but I think they add a $28 plate fee when you get your new plates. Don't believe that's a recurring fee for the following years.

10/12/2012 10:40:35 PM

Yeah, pretty much. I know they charge $25 for the actual tag, plus taxes, figure less than $100. Inspection is $30. I wouldn't usually bother turning in the tag if I it wasn't going to sit idle for a year or so.

However, if it's due for inspection you pretty much have to fix it soon or turn in the tags. There is a provision where if you spend a certain amount of money trying to get it to pass inspection they'll let you slide for the year, but it's a lot of trips to the dmv and mechanic to get it done and I've never personally tried.

Also it's important that you turn in the tags, then cancel the insurance. In that order.

10/12/2012 10:44:42 PM

Quote :

"There is a provision where if you spend a certain amount of money trying to get it to pass inspection they'll let you slide for the year, but it's a lot of trips to the dmv and mechanic to get it done and I've never personally tried."

what you need for this:

first failed inspection
repairs over $200 to fix issues that caused it to fail
another failed inspection from the same place

http://daq.state.nc.us/motor/inspect/emission_faq.shtml#G13

10/13/2012 4:11:26 PM