jeffneil

Greetings All,

Told you I would share the story about the reason why I needed a blue slip for a 2 year old car !

It all came to a head about 10 days ago when I got a letter from NRMA saying my greenslip that I took out the previous August had expired (since it had not been used within 3 months of issue) and I could get a refund for it at any branch.

Huh ? I said - what are they on about - it must be some mistake.

So out I go to the garage to check the rego sticker on the car and then it hit me - it says valid to 'September 2005' WTF ???

Looking back through all the paperwork I realised that I had paid for a greenslip and then waited for the rego papers to come soon after that - and I was still waiting. They never arrived.

So for the last 4 and a half months we have been driving here, there and everywhere in an unregistered car. Incredible but so easy to do.

So people - check your rego is current ! Especially if you have changed your address.

So that meant I had to get a new greenslip - then get a blue slip - done in a local mechanics early last Saturday morning - I don't think they see many of these kinds of cars there - it was surrounded by elderly Pulsars and Corollas and he was asking me questions like 'how many seats does it have' 'is it a turbo' does it have the 18" rims or the 16" rims' and after all was done it was then back home to take the custom plates off and go to the RTA in another car to surrender them and get new plates and order the custom ones remade.

I had to surrender our custom blue plates, they get destroyed, then remade exactly the same and we have lovely new yellow NSW plates on it for a couple of weeks - ugh those things look bad on a blue car. On any car really.

Naturally the RTA says that failure to receive the papers is not a valid reason for not registering your car and I can understand that but part of the problem was that our local council renumbered our street and although I changed it at the RTA 1 year ago they said that particular rego went to the old address and got returned to them. So they don't follow that kind of thing up and I never gave it another thought.

So our new rego starts from last Friday and you could say we have had the last 4 1/2 months free since nothing happened to the car or anyone in it.

Regards
Jeffneil

EZZY

did the bas@#*ds make you to pay for your custome plates for those 4 and 1/2 months while the 8 was unregistered but still under your "care"?

my rego expired in mid dec, the night before the expiry date i have decided to check the RTA website site for new number plates (dont know why... but i did).... anyway, found out that i can get my first name in the new style personalised plates. went into the RTA and ordered the new plates and told them i will come back and pay for the rego when the new plates are ready for collection (and hand in my custom plates).....

the letter can on the 30th, went to pick them up and pay for the rego, the chick at the counter wanted to charge me extra $3..... i have no idea and nor did she..... i told her its not about the money... i just want to know what it is for (i have been getting new plates left, right and centre for the past 8 years and never had to pay extra $$$...).

anyway, she couldnt tell me the reason and kept on saying "you need to pay for everything first before i can investigate." so went ahead and she swipped the c/c..... she still couldnt give me a vaild reason.... so i started to make a fuss out of it and she had to get someone to speak to me..... she told him that story and he said.... that $3 is because you had your old custom plates for 2 weeks after the expiry of rego....

this must be their new money making scheme..... left the RTA after that....

spaldo

Jeff, I have had 2 other friends who have had a similar experience with their rego papers. One of them was unknowingly unregistered for nearly 12 months. It's pretty scarey really, because I believe it makes all your insuranced invalid.

timbo

So, I guess there's no reference to "customer service" in their charter

If I was you, I'd raise this with my local state MP. Just crap!

jeffneil

No the good folk at the RTA didn't make me back pay the rego - and the plates are being remade so they are treated as never having existed I suppose.

But now that I think of it - I suppose I have had the plates for free all that time so good on me - it's nice to get something for nothing - and this time I got precisely that - nothing for nothing I suppose.

Yes it is scary because as you say, you are not covered for ANYTHING with no rego - no insurance, no greenslip - nothing.

when you think back at a time like that it just doesn't pay to do the 'what ifs' really - in the unregistered period our car has been driven to Melbourne, taken on the ship to Tasmania, driven all around there, then put on the ship for Sydney and also covered hundreds of kms in NSW and in Sydney - things we would NEVER have done if we had realised we were not covered. Ignorance was indeed bliss.

I suppose I should hit NRMA insurance for a refund on the 'uncovered period' - hahaha - like they would give anthing back in a case like that ! Might be good for a laugh when I go into the local branch to get the refund on the original green slip don't you think ?

I'm not looking forward to that actually as the office closest to me seems to be staffed by missing links and even a simple enquiry is beyond them.

Oh well, it's all over now - onward we go into 2006. Congrats to Mazda for COTY, hopefully that won't mean the dealers get too cocky like they were a few years ago. Remember you dealers - not ALL customers are morons - some are for sure, but not all. Some car dealer staff are too.

Regards
Jeffneil

xxup

We may have no water or doctors up here, but we also don't have green slips or blue slips or annual fees for personalised plates - which is one good thing...

That's a shocker...

Revolver

Sure hope the boys in blue don't get wind of your story. Driving an unregistered vehicle for that period of time would be difficult to defend - regrettably, not many beaks would take much notice of the fact that the RTA failed to deliver your rego papers.

Thanks for the warning.

takahashi

Same thing that is hard for Victorians to understand.

I have personalised plate that comes out of the old car and transfer to a new car without any charge!

The only charge is to take $24 to get a random plate for the old car.

KJ238

I have driven round VIC with an unregistered car before... My gf never thought about the rego and let it go expired... She never even read those letter Vicroads sent to her about paying the rego lol...

RRS

Jeff.. we almost had a similar thing with our '8 last year- RTA didn't even send papers to anyone.

Luckily one of our other cars is due at the same time, and we paid both greenslips together, and then couldn't find the rego renewal- g/f rang the RTA and they had to issue the papers.

I once got done for driving an unrego'd car- I was working shifts and had NFI what day it was... I was less than 24 hours out of rego. Got pulled over at 3 am (on way home from work) less than 500 metres from home.. Cops were just out to be difficult really- given what other cops told me they would have done... 300 buck fine, demerits and supposed to attend court... lovely...


Rowds

takahashi

You did not go to court did you???? In many many sense you have done the wrong thing.. but going to court will be wasting tax payer's money IMO.

RRS

I had no choice.. no rego is a front up to court offence - not a piece of paper, some $$ and away you go!

you have to either front court, or send a stat dec saying you're guility... the magistrate then determines the fine... (this was in SA)

I was tempted to attend, but I was busy arranging to interstate at the time, and only just managed to deliver the stat dec in time!!... I knew I wasn't going to win the day- so I copped it...

In futire I'll front up to court if I feel justified -that's what it's there for... It'd want be something worthwhile though- a 300 buck fine isn't worth the hassle...

my household pays more than enough tax- so I'll 'waste' what I want thanks very much taka... D


Rowds

takahashi

that makes a lot of sense... you pay for it.. you use it LOL

jormatom

My wife forgot to pay the rego on a Magna we had recently and we kept on driving it around. Shortly after that, we received a reminder letter so we went and paid up.

Shortly after the reminder, I get a speeding camera fine, together with a fine for driving an unregistered vehicle, both dated after the rego had expired.

$500 and 3 demerit points thank you very much, on top of the $135 for speeding.

Tried to argue the point with the RTA and Civic Compliance. Fat chance.

Needless to say, after the shouting match I had with the wife about her not paying the rego, I spent a couple of nights on the couch.

Greg

timbo

Surely, SHE got the speeding fine and demerit points

Don't worry...I can see the futility of arguing that one...

xxup

Boy were you brave.. I have seen Mrs Jormatom in action rounding up your boys AND my daughter - I would have just done the stat dec...

jormatom

Unfortunately I was the one who was driving at the time and the car was registered in my name. After the argument, there was no way of convincing her to take the rap for me.

sco

At least the couch is more comfortable than the dog house

This thread reminds me of a story. I got my first car before I got my licence (was on learners). I was a late starter when it came to driving as my parents aren't good teachers and I couldn't afford a car through uni so I saw no point paying for lessons. The car I got through a novated leasing scheme with my employer... they had a weird arrangement where you got more money if you took a novated lease over car allowance paid into your salary. Another attractive thing was a one price suits all deal with an insurance company (about $500 IIRC).

So I get the car thinking it's all sorted and I get a call saying I've been refused insurance because I don't have my driver's licence. Car had been on the road for a week. The missus had driven it to work... she was unimpressed when she got the "don't crash the car on the way home phone call". So after many phone calls and a bunch of quotes for at least $1200 to insurance the car and getting a cover note they finally come to the senses (probably after the company fleet manager chewed their ear off) and gave me cover. So $500 a year with no rating was a great deal. The stress of knowing I had an uninsured car was not fun. Ignorance is bliss.