So after 2+ years of trusty service, my 04 MC took a ride on the tow truck this morning. Reason: expired registration

I was driving route 295 in NJ as I do every single work day on the way to my job, going 70mph in the slow lane, being passed by dozens of cars in the middle and fast lanes and a cop decides to pull me over. For whatever reason, out of all the cars on the road, he decided to run my license plate number and discovered that the registration had expired a year ago.

He walks over as i pull the window down and calmly says "Sir, your registration expired and I will be inpounding your car until you renew it. A toe truck will be here shortly to take your car, i will drive you over to the next exit on the highway and drop you off at the bottom of the ramp, you are on your own from there."

Indeed my registration was expired since I moved about a year and a half ago and never got the reminder from the DMV at my new address to renew. There is no way im **** enough to check my registration on a regular basis - i renew when i get a letter telling me i need to.

So here I am freaking out cause im about to lose the MINI and get dropped off on the side of a country road to fend for myself and then i got very lucky: a coworker who has the same commute as I was able to pull over and pick me up on the side of the road. I never did see the MINI get on the toe truck since I didn't want to have my friend waiting with me on the shoulder of a busy highway. They cop waited and made sure the car got towed to a lot. I nope they didn't damage the car, but im mentally prepared for some scratches on the black plastic mold on the front bumper.

So expired registration = a ruined friday, $200+ out of my pocket and a trip to the DMV, a police station and a pound. Thank you NJ!

 

That sucks!

Hope you got everythinng set, and I hope you get your MINI back soon (if you didn't already).

-Cody

 

NJ State Police are on a collection binge this week. I drove from PA to NY on Wednesday, crossed the PA to NJ turnpike bridge, and saw 4 patrol units. Two of them had cars pulled over already.

Driving back tonight from NY to PA through NJ, and will keep it easy.

 

There is no way im **** enough to check my registration on a regular basis - i renew when i get a letter telling me i need to.


I don't call it ****, I call it being a responsible driver. Knowing when registration is due and getting it done!!! I am sure the state will nail you for late fees also. What about insurance? Have you forgotten to pay insurance for 1-1/2 years also?

I am not trying to offend you, but keeping on top of these things sometimes saves cash and a headache.

 

He must have been really bored to pick a black MC with 15 inch holies in the slow lane and run the plates.

 

Being really good at following a bureaurocratic process such as car registration does not necessarily define how responsible a driver is. I am always insured, my engine oil is checked every other week, my tire pressures wear sidewalls and lug nut settings are checked once a month, my street tires are replaced before they reach 2/32nds tread and i generally drive the same speed or slightly slower than the rest of the traffic. Those things are much more along the lines of "responsible driver" than remembering when registration needs to be renewed. Furthermore, if the state would run an experiment and stop sending out renewal reminders, 90% of drivers, many of them very responsible drivers would miss the renewal deadline. Renewing registration is a BS task that the majority of people don't put at the top of their to do list.

 

Since we pay pretty high registration fees in Cali, we always know when to expect the renewal notices! Seriously, I am surprised that it didn't occur to you that yours was overdue or late. Doesn't your auto insurance require you to keep an up-to-date registration? Sorry about getting snagged in the NJ collection binge...drag!

 

Thats the first thing I told the cop. "I have had this car ensured since the day I bought it, how can the registration be expired?" He said that there is no relation between the two - which doesn't make sense to me.

 

vano, I bet you'll never forget your registration again!

 

hmm did you check the car when you got it back to see if they messed up or scratched it when it was being towed. I hope all is well!

 

Not after this i won't. I have owned cars for the last 10 years and this has never happened to me, but then I always got a reminder in the mail and have become pretty dependent on it. Not any more - I am marking down my outlook calendary now.

 

Haven't gotten my car back yet - I need to get to the DMV first to settle the issue, then head over to the police station 20 miles away to get permission to get my car back, then drive the permit over to the pound to pick it up. Hope to have it done by end of today, so that I have the car for Sunday's autox.

 

Wow...that's a lot of steps to get it back! Good luck!

 

yeah Good luck and happy autox'ing

 

But getting your car impounded???? That seems a bit extreme. It is not as if he was running 10 kilos of crack when he was pulled over. In California, you get a fix-it ticket and you have about a month to get the car registered. You will have some non-trivial penalties to pay, but at least your car isn't impounded. Welcome to the National Socialist Republik mit Jersey (a member of the Axis of Evil - zieg heil!!!).

 

It seems to me NJ police is in the business of making lots of money as of late by supporting the local tow companies!

And as for Vano. Tough lesson to learn buddy. Always, always be on top of registration due dates, insurance, etc. Sorry it sucks but such is life. When you own a car you agree to be responsible and on top of EVERYTHING, not just mechanical maintenance. There is no excuse for that kind of oversight and in that regard I side with the cop 100%, minus impounding the car. That seems to me just a way to make extra revenue for the state/tow company and "criminalizing" an oversight like that. I think a hefty ticket would have been more than enough to get the message accross. but towing the car away? C'mmon!

 

Here in Georgia, your registration expires on your birthday. Now we can renew online, which is fabulous, but prior to that I spent many a birthday in line at the DMV It was always my fault, though, since they send out the notices 30 days prior. I would forget about it until my birthday when suddenly it would dawn on me there was something I was supposed to have done Nothing like being told Happy Birthday every year from DMV employees
Annette

 

More importantly, make sure they did not screw up the underside when the hooked it as they did mine. Put a tow hook in a hole in the front frame and made a 3" tear that is costing me big time now.

Good luck.

regards,
Red

 

Exactly. Isn't there a principle about making the punishment fit the crime? Towing the car doesn't exactly fit the violation of not registering the car....

 

I agree. That is totally nuts. Wonder what other states do that.

I love NJ, but their government is corrupt. No doubt!

regards,
Red

 

NJ just got crossed off my list of states that I will visit. If they will tow your car for not having the registration current, what will they do if you roll a stop sign? Execute you???? WTF!?!?!?!?

 

Reminds me of that scene in Life of Brian:

Brian: What'll they do to me?
Inmate: Crucifixtion...
Brian: CRUCIFIXTION?!
Inmate: Well, yeah, first offense.

That's a shame with those NJ cops, though. What they should have is some sort of grace period. While I admit having your registration expired for the last year is quite a bit, the cop should at least have been able to tell that you were a [mildly] upstanding member of society and weren't trying to use a '72 Chevy Peece O'Crap to run heroin cross-state. As such is the case, he could have been nice and just said to get it renewed in a week or [insert random public safety officer threat here].

 

Vano: Did you get your car back yet?

 

Yeah, it's the cop's fault for doing his job. I pay my outrageous registration fees, so you should too! 1 year expired??? Give me a break! I bet you told the cop you were just on your way to pay your fees.

And for California, if your car is 6 months expired, those mean cops can take your car too. You don't even have to be in your car. They can find it legally parked on the street or in a parking lot and take it.

Vano needs to take some responsibility for his actions or lack of action.

 

Didnt He Have Problems Too??