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No back penalties for old cars in California


xdmn

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I just went through this today. The clerk insisted I had to pay 3 years of back registration and penalties. I showed him this paper and then he said "No, it has to be a historical vehicle and have historical plates." He wasn't budging. 

 

I then asked to talk to the manager and we went over the first sentence: "Planned nonoperation (PNO) requirements DO NOT apply to historical interest AND special interest vehicles. I told him I wasn't claiming it as a historical  vehicle (though it could be). I was claiming it was a "Special Interest" vehicle. It only has to be one, not both. And so we finally agreed and he typed in the proper keystrokes on the computer to wipe out the back fees.

 

Anyway, this document is no longer on the DMV website and so I am attaching it here. It looks a lot more official than trying to copy and paste internet text. Good luck!

 

 

12vin21.png

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  • 2 months later...
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  • 1 year later...

I apologize for reviving an old thread. Regardless of all of the good information posted by everybody, im in need of some help in which applies to this topic. 

 

I have a 65 c10 that i had purchased a few years ago.

Shortly after i ran into some financial troubles but managed to be able to hold onto the truck. I have the pinkslip but I never registered it. When the truck was purchased, it was registered but was about to expire. Im about to get everything in order, im sure there will be some backfees. Do any of the codes mention at the begining of this thread apply to my situation? I would greatly appreciate any feedback .

 

Mario

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Your user account doesn't say where you're located but if California, then there will likely be additional fees to re-register it if you did not obtain a Non Op before it expired. Of course, it might make a difference if it has been unregistered for so long that it has fallen from the DMV records, in which case there will likely be no fees to get it back into the system but it would require a VIN verification. It would be to your advantage to simply call the DMV to check its status. I am a licensed California VIN verifier myself and have assisted with vehicles where that has happened but I can't speak directly to the codes so this is from my own personal experience only.

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  • 2 weeks later...

Hi, does this code still exist and would it apply to a 1991 maxima?  I have a 1991 maxima that I tried to junk but the California DMV wants me to pay $700 back registration.  I bought the car from someone a while ago but it wouldn't pass smog. I turned it over to my brother and found he never finished registering it (stolen by the mechanic - needed a new engine).  The car was towed to my home after my brother died a bit ago and the junl yard won't take it without the DMV junk certificate.  I don't have $700 to junk a car that doesn't run - I'm still paying for a funeral.  

 

Anyway to get this car junked or out of my garage without paying $700 iin back fees? The fees are now accumulating again cuz the DMV Rep put the car back in the system under my name even though I gave her the paperwork showing when I turned the car over to him and a copy of the death certificate.

 

 

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It applies to any vehicle without regard to age and includes trailers or any thing else that uses the public roads but if you keep it long enough it should drop out of the DMV database. They say five years but it’s been my experience that they don’t drop it until later so you may by stuck with it! Best thing is to call and talk with the DMV again and explain the situation and see what they can do.

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The critical issue is that you complete certificate(s) of non-operation for each period of ownership from the termination of the last period for which it was registered.  That means each person who had control for a period of time has to complete a non-op cert (not necessarily a formal non-op "registration" with the state) for his/her period of control.  That means "not driven or left standing" on any public road.  Absent a complete chain, you are liable for not more than three years of back penalties.  @Packard Donknows his stuff and I hope he can elucidate further.

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  • 1 year later...

Dredging this up once again. I found this topic doing a quick search and it helped to find what I was looking for. Last year I spoke with a DMV manager friend (not local to me) who told me about this and said there was a flyer they had posted around the office years ago(obviously the one posted in this thread). 
 

So Friday, I went to the local DMV and of course they wanted $700+ in back fees. Told them the car is a historic vehicle and I’m a collector. They then told me I had to have previously declared this and of course I asked to see that policy. He went to the supervisor and she said I had to have declared so I could have the historic plate. I then told the clerk that I don’t need a plate and I already have one and it doesn’t need to have the special plate because that’s a separate issue. I just needed to complete the cno retroactively and pay current fees. I told him the code sections and he agreed, but his supervisor wasn’t sure and asked what site I was using to get the info, so I told her dmv.gov. She called Sacramento, then had the clerk tell me that they were going to give me a current registration and Sacramento would research it within the next 30 days and then they would get back to me.

 

Wondering if I should contact them if I don’t hear anything.

 

Thanks to all who keep posting so this shows up in the Google search near the top.

Edited by DaveR72 (see edit history)
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My experience has been over decades that citing the CA Vehicle Code (abbreviated "CVC") means nothing to the DMV field office personnel, even the managers, because their controlling document is the DMV Operations Manual.  Yet if we are cited, the law enforcement officer alleges a violation of a specific section of the CVC, which is the *law* enacted by the legislature and signed by the governor.  I carry a printed out copy of Sec. 5004 with my registration and insurance cards as a potential side-of-the-road argument settler.

 

That is why I have encouraged collectors to download the following sections of the CVC from the DMV's own website (to assure the most recent), then to call the DMV Public Inquiries Office in Sacramento at (916) 657-6560 and ask them for their interpretations of the CVC section *you* cite (after research) and ask for the corresponding sections, by number, of the DMV Operations Manual, which you then cite by number to the field office clerk, who can key the sections into their counter terminal to expedite the whole process.

 

See:

 

* CVC Section 4604 (d)(3) - exception for paying penalties for old cars not registered without non-op

 

* CVC Section 5004 but especially 5004 (a)'s word "primarily" [note it does NOT say "exclusively"], and 5004 (f) -- all of which relate to definitions of "collector car" and restrictions thereon.

 

You still need documentation (1) that the vehicle was not driven or parked on public roadways from the time the last registration expired until you acquired it, and (2) the same certification from the date you acquired it until you walk into the DMV.  For the first, they *may* accept a signed statement from a spouse, child, caregiver, or even neighbor--or from an executor with personal knowledge of the last owner's situation.

 

OR secure the services of a DMV expediter for a couple of hundred which will save you high blood pressure.

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  • 8 months later...

So I created an account just to leave a thanks to you folks!!

 

Purchased a 2000 Ford F350 with ambulance body.  It had $2800 in back fees.  Using the info here I went to DMV and provided a statement of facts for the lost title, a statement of facts explaining it's "special interest vehicle" status (less than 100 sold in CA), a CNO from the previous owner, VIN verification (DMV wanted this to switch it's vehicle type from pickup to ambulance), and copies of the CVC and the above notice (thank a zillion for posting that hoser!), and regular transfer title form.

 

Not really sure what they did but I ended up paying $270 which they said was the sales tax on a $3000 vehicle (what I paid) and a title transfer fee.  Not sure that adds up correctly and it wasn't itemized but it seemed about right.

 

THANKS again!!

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  • 5 months later...

Just stumbled upon this page from doing google searches, but here’s my story see if any of you can help. I just bought a 1989 Acura Integra from some college kid, that was passed down from his grandfather after he passed away. The vehicle has not been registered since 2010 and is on non op. Before I attempt to go to the dmv to see if they can waive my fees what do you guys suggest I do first or say when I’m there. Thanks in advance. 

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Quote

Each state is different but here in California, as long as it has a current non-op, there shouldn’t be any penalties. Note, however, that non-ops are not forever and must be renewed from time to time. That said, I’ve never had penalties on any car and some hadn’t been resisted or had non-ops in decades but that might not be the case on newer cars.

 

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  • 1 month later...

California where I live has a one-time non-op fee BUT it's apparently not forever. As I understand it, eventually (although no preset time is stated) it disappears from the system without any warning. When that happens, it's a waste of time to go to the DMV to try to reinstate it without first getting a VIN verification which is what I do as a licensed California VIN verifier. Going there with the verification in-hand saves a trip.

Edited by Packard Don (see edit history)
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No trick. Just have it verified first, then take in the title and the proper form filled that you are applying for a non-op. It wouldn't hurt to also fill a Statement of Facts that it has been stored on private property and never on the road in all that time. I have never ever had any back-fees whatsoever.

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50 minutes ago, californiamilleghia said:

most owners do not sign up for the Non-op when they park a car with intentions of getting it running "soon"

"soon" turns into years and the back fees start adding up , 

 

So is there a trick to register a car that has sat for 5-10 years without a Non-op  and cut down the back fees ?

you have to reference the 4604(d)3 and have a clerk, manager or regional office that is either familiar with it or will look it up. Many times they are not familiar with it and try to tell you it has to have been already registered as such with the antique plate. Not true. This is becoming more difficult as the old timers in the DMV system have retired and interpret it differently.  Bottom line is if it is 25 years old or older, of historic significance and you qualify as a collector as described in their statue, you should qualify for the exemption.

 

I too have never had to pay back penalties due to this but am finding it more and more difficult to relay the same level of understanding of the applicable statutes to hobbyists and especially more difficult to find DMV personnel that are willing to see it the same way.  

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