Transporting a newly purchased vehicle?

[Titan]

OPERATOR LICENSING AND VEHICLE
CONTROL REGULATION

Transfer of plates
86(1) If ownership of a private passenger vehicle passes from one
person to another, the new owner may operate, or permit another
person to operate, the newly acquired motor vehicle while it is
displaying a licence plate issued to the new owner with respect to
the registration of another private passenger vehicle.

(3) The licence plate may be displayed on the newly acquired
vehicle for not more than 14 days from the date its ownership
passes to the new owner if the new owner intends
(a) to apply to register the vehicle, and
(b) to have the displayed licence plate reissued for use on the
vehicle.
(4) The owner or operator of the vehicle shall carry
(a) proof of ownership of the newly acquired vehicle,
(b) a valid financial responsibility card relating to the vehicle,
and
(c) proof that the licence plate is issued in respect of a vehicle
registered as owned by that owner.
(5) A person to whom a licence plate is issued may apply to the
Registrar to transfer the plate to another vehicle to be registered in
the applicant’s name if the application is made within 14 days after
the applicant becomes the owner of the other vehicle.

https://www.qp.alberta.ca/documents/Regs/2002_320.pdf

[Derek Sutton]

Originally Posted by Sliver

You apply if you want to make the change permanent.

You can just slap it on for up to 14 days without consulting anybody, which is obviously more than enough time to get the new car registered, and then put the old plate back on the original car.

(that's my read on the quote, anyway)

Right, and for temporary registration, you get an In Transit Permit

In-transit permit (temporary plate)
Alberta does not have a temporary licence plate. We can issue you a special permit called an in-transit permit.
An in-transit permit allows a person to move a vehicle or trailer that doesn’t have a valid vehicle registration and licence plate.
The in-transit permit can be used in the following situations:
moving a vehicle between 2 points in Canada
maximum 3 days within Alberta, maximum 7 days out of province
towing
maximum 3 days within Alberta, maximum 7 days out of province
for car dealership demonstration/test drive purposes
maximum 7 days
repairs/servicing
maximum 7 days
salvage vehicles
maximum 24 hours
When you’re moving the vehicle from one province to another, the starting point or ending point must be in Alberta.
Request an in-transit permit

[RedHot25]

Originally Posted by Derek Sutton

In that quote the key word is apply, meaning your go to registries and ask to transfer/ get the plate transferred from vehicle A to vehicle B. Not simply use a plate that you snagged of your other vehicle.

I'm in AB

Sorry Pepsi, but I'm with Derek. That reads exactly like he says - apply. I.e. get permission.

[Titan]

Odd little detail in that you must intend to register the new car and transfer that plate to the new car.

I think technically (and this may be into angels on a pin territory) but as written you are not able to put the plate on a new car, drive it to registries, register it with a new plate and put the old plate back on the old car.

Obviously, this is nearly impossible to enforce. "Do you intend to transfer it?" "Yes, oops I changed my mind after I got the new car registered with new plates".

However, it is interesting as it is kind of sloppy drafting.

[Titan]

Originally Posted by RedHot25

Sorry Pepsi, but I'm with Derek. That reads exactly like he says - apply. I.e. get permission.

I would have thought that too but I think they were referring to applying to either register the new car with the old plates or apply to register the new car with new plates, not apply to use the old plates to drive the new car home.

From the regulations I posted:

You can put old plates on a new car, without any form of application, if you have all the paperwork and intend to transfer the plates to it within 14 days. My second post identifies a bit of a loophole in the regs. but I am not sure if it ever would be applied in practice.

[pylon]

If it's a pre-owned vehicle, usually you can slap an existing plate on it and drive it away in most cases. It doesn't matter if it's a dealer or private purchase. But this is not always the case. You should check with your insurance comapny first, or try and find it in the actual policy documents they mail you.

With my insurance company, I get 10 days cross over insurance automatically once an existing plate off a registered vehicle is put on the vehicle. That is Intact Insurance. This is under the assumption you no longer have or have sold/traded the other car. Some but not all insurance companies have the same policy.

If the vehicle is insured and used, you have 14 calendar days to transfer it at registries, just carry your bill of sale as proof of purchase.

If it is a brand new car same rules apply, but you better carry the NVIS (New Vehicle Information Statement) in the car, as the VIN will not exist in the system. Basically the NVIS is the birth certificate for the car, and gives the registry the info they need to activate the vehicle and registration in the system. If you don't have it, there's a good chance your car is getting hooked, because they will be suspicious the car is stolen/has a fake vin plate.

All of the above, is assuming you have an active registered license plate.

I work in the car business, and have dealt with this stuff for 20 some odd years, and as far as I know, the rules haven't changed.

[Sliver]

Originally Posted by Derek Sutton

Right, and for temporary registration, you get an In Transit Permit

In-transit permit (temporary plate)
Alberta does not have a temporary licence plate. We can issue you a special permit called an in-transit permit.
An in-transit permit allows a person to move a vehicle or trailer that doesn’t have a valid vehicle registration and licence plate.
The in-transit permit can be used in the following situations:
moving a vehicle between 2 points in Canada
maximum 3 days within Alberta, maximum 7 days out of province
towing
maximum 3 days within Alberta, maximum 7 days out of province
for car dealership demonstration/test drive purposes
maximum 7 days
repairs/servicing
maximum 7 days
salvage vehicles
maximum 24 hours
When you’re moving the vehicle from one province to another, the starting point or ending point must be in Alberta.
Request an in-transit permit

You'd use the in-transit permit if you didn't already have a plate in your name that you could just borrow for up to 14 days.

[Weitz]

Originally Posted by Titan

I would have thought that too but I think they were referring to applying to either register the new car with the old plates or apply to register the new car with new plates, not apply to use the old plates to drive the new car home.

From the regulations I posted:

You can put old plates on a new car, without any form of application, if you have all the paperwork and intend to transfer the plates to it within 14 days. My second post identifies a bit of a loophole in the regs. but I am not sure if it ever would be applied in practice.

So basically it appears that this would be totally unenforceable. Because if they pulled you over you could just transfer the old plates to the new vehicle and get a new plate for the old one?

[pylon]

Originally Posted by Derek Sutton

Right, and for temporary registration, you get an In Transit Permit

In-transit permit (temporary plate)
Alberta does not have a temporary licence plate. We can issue you a special permit called an in-transit permit.
An in-transit permit allows a person to move a vehicle or trailer that doesn’t have a valid vehicle registration and licence plate.
The in-transit permit can be used in the following situations:
moving a vehicle between 2 points in Canada
maximum 3 days within Alberta, maximum 7 days out of province
towing
maximum 3 days within Alberta, maximum 7 days out of province
for car dealership demonstration/test drive purposes
maximum 7 days
repairs/servicing
maximum 7 days
salvage vehicles
maximum 24 hours
When you’re moving the vehicle from one province to another, the starting point or ending point must be in Alberta.
Request an in-transit permit

Also In Transit Permits require insurance/binder of insurance to obtain. We give them out to out of province purchasers, but it states right in the guide, we have to see and retain proof of insurance should it be requested.

[Titan]

Originally Posted by Weitz

So basically it appears that this would be totally unenforceable. Because if they pulled you over you could just transfer the old plates to the new vehicle and get a new plate for the old one?

Hypothetically, yes. However, the cop has to ascertain your intentions. At the time of the infraction, you may have fully intended to transfer the old plates but changed your mind at some point after you take the plates off. Then, you are no longer bound by your intentions as the plates aren't on the car anymore. Just sloppy drafting that gets under my skin more than anything and way more pedantic than necessary. But I am getting paid by the hour to be an internet lawyer, right?

[Titan]

It is probably important to bring this piece up as I glossed over it above:

(4) The owner or operator of the vehicle shall carry
(a) proof of ownership of the newly acquired vehicle,
(b) a valid financial responsibility card relating to the vehicle,
and
(c) proof that the licence plate is issued in respect of a vehicle
registered as owned by that owner.

Yes, you can slap an old plate on a new car BUT, you MUST have the proof of ownership of the new car, proof of insurance for the new car and proof of ownership of the licence plate and it is in the name of the person that bought the car. I doubt many people grab their registration of the plate when they do this and if you can't produce that you will expose yourself to getting a ticket.

[PepsiFree]

Originally Posted by Titan

It is probably important to bring this piece up as I glossed over it above:

(4) The owner or operator of the vehicle shall carry
(a) proof of ownership of the newly acquired vehicle,
(b) a valid financial responsibility card relating to the vehicle,
and
(c) proof that the licence plate is issued in respect of a vehicle
registered as owned by that owner.

Yes, you can slap an old plate on a new car BUT, you MUST have the proof of ownership of the new car, proof of insurance for the new car and proof of ownership of the licence plate and it is in the name of the person that bought the car. I doubt many people grab their registration of the plate when they do this and if you can't produce that you will expose yourself to getting a ticket.

I always carry my registration for any/every car that I own.

Isn't that typical? I've never owned more than 3 cars at one time and that was only for a short period while I sold one of them. But (and this is a different question) do people not keep their registration on them??

[pylon]

Originally Posted by PepsiFree

I always carry my registration for any/every car that I own.

Isn't that typical? I've never owned more than 3 cars at one time and that was only for a short period while I sold one of them. But (and this is a different question) do people not keep their registration on them??

I've gone digital in that aspect. I have a folder in my camera roll with all my registrations/insurance cards.

I've asked police officers that are our customers about this issue, and although they don't explicitly have to accept it, most of them will. I've had a few instances like check stops where I've used it, and it's not been an issue.

However, if you hand them an unlocked phone, there's nothing stopping them from going through anything on your camera roll. So if you have something to hide, carry the paper.

[PepsiFree]

Originally Posted by pylon

I've gone digital in that aspect. I have a folder in my camera roll with all my registrations/insurance cards.

I've asked police officers that are our customers about this issue, and although they don't explicitly have to accept it, most of them will. I've had a few instances like check stops where I've used it, and it's not been an issue.

However, if you hand them an unlocked phone, there's nothing stopping them from going through anything on your camera roll. So if you have something to hide, carry the paper.

I'd never thought of that, that's pretty smart.

I guess if police want to see a bunch of questionable-in-taste selfies and some great memes, they could go ahead.

[pylon]

Originally Posted by PepsiFree

I'd never thought of that, that's pretty smart.

I guess if police want to see a bunch of questionable-in-taste selfies and some great memes, they could go ahead.

Yeah, I have a ton of pics of my Weiner on my phone...... thankfully they are of the 4 legged type.

"Here's Ruby in a funny hat, here's Ruby in a carrying a really big stuffy, here's Ruby growling at her own fart....."

"You're free to go sir"

[Titan]

Originally Posted by pylon

Yeah, I have a ton of pics of my Weiner on my phone...... thankfully they are of the 4 legged type.

"Here's Ruby in a funny hat, here's Ruby in a carrying a really big stuffy, here's Ruby growling at her own fart....."

"You're free to go sir"

Sir, this is a Wendy's.

[bizaro86]

Originally Posted by PepsiFree

I always carry my registration for any/every car that I own.

Isn't that typical? I've never owned more than 3 cars at one time and that was only for a short period while I sold one of them. But (and this is a different question) do people not keep their registration on them??

I leave my registrations in my glove box. I never need it when I'm not driving a vehicle, and my wife and I have 2 vehicles that we both drive.

[Fuzz]

Originally Posted by bizaro86

I leave my registrations in my glove box. I never need it when I'm not driving a vehicle, and my wife and I have 2 vehicles that we both drive.

Ya, I don't get the phone thing as a primary use. I keep a picture so if my vehicle is stolen I have that info, but the idea of passing a phone to a cop, rather than a piece of paper in a glove box just baffles me.

[pylon]

Originally Posted by Fuzz

Ya, I don't get the phone thing as a primary use. I keep a picture so if my vehicle is stolen I have that info, but the idea of passing a phone to a cop, rather than a piece of paper in a glove box just baffles me.

Registrations and insurance cards have your home address on them.

So dude steals or even just breaks into your family SUV at the mall, and has your garage door opener..... where is the place you most likely aren't for the foreseeable future?

[PepsiFree]

Yeah I've always heard not to leave anything valuable or with personal info in your car, and having had a car broken into once, I can see why.