Registration Ticket Lawyer

Hadn’t had a moment to have your vehicle inspected? Car having emissions problems and can’t pass inspection? Some issues with your registration? If you’ve had an Expired Registration or Insurance Related Ticket in Greensboro, High Point or Asheboro, our Attorneys can help.

Did you know that Driving a Car with an Expired Registration Tag is a Class 3 Misdemeanor? Did you know that giving someone your plates to use on their vehicle is also a Class 3 Misdemeanor? These Tickets can not only effect your License but they also will have an effect on your criminal record because these charges are Misdemeanors. So whatever you do, don’t enter a Guilty to Plea to Registration or Insurance Related Ticket.

This is why you should contact our Guilford County & Randolph County – Greensboro, High Point & Asheboro Lawyers to help with your Expired Registration or Lapse of Insurance Tickets.
336-379-0539

The Law of Registration Tickets & Insurance Tickets in North Carolina:
North Carolina General Statutes:

North Carolina General Statute § 20-111. Violation of registration provisions.

It shall be unlawful for any person to commit any of the following acts:
(1) To drive a vehicle on a highway, or knowingly permit a vehicle owned by that person to be driven on a highway, when the vehicle is not registered with the Division in accordance with this Article or does not display a current registration plate. Violation of this subdivision is a Class 3 misdemeanor.
(2) To display or cause or permit to be displayed or to have in possession any registration card, certificate of title or registration number plate knowing the same to be fictitious or to have been canceled, revoked, suspended or altered, or to willfully display an expired license or registration plate on a vehicle knowing the same to be expired. Violation of this subdivision is a Class 3 misdemeanor.
(3) The giving, lending, or borrowing of a license plate for the purpose of using same on some motor vehicle other than that for which issued shall make the giver, lender, or borrower guilty of a Class 3 misdemeanor. Where license plate is found being improperly used, such plate or plates shall be revoked or canceled, and new license plates must be purchased before further operation of the motor vehicle.
(4) To fail or refuse to surrender to the Division, upon demand, any title certificate, registration card or registration number plate which has been suspended, canceled or revoked as in this Article provided. Service of the demand shall be in accordance with G.S. 20-48.
(5) To use a false or fictitious name or address in any application for the registration of any vehicle or for a certificate of title or for any renewal or duplicate thereof, or knowingly to make a false statement or knowingly to conceal a material fact or otherwise commit a fraud in any such application. A violation of this subdivision shall constitute a Class 1 misdemeanor.
(6) To give, lend, sell or obtain a certificate of title for the purpose of such certificate being used for any purpose other than the registration, sale, or other use in connection with the vehicle for which the certificate was issued. Any person violating the provisions of this subdivision shall be guilty of a Class 2 misdemeanor. (1937, c. 407, s. 75; 1943, c. 592, s. 2; 1945, c. 576, s. 6; c. 635; 1949, c. 360; 1955, c. 294, s. 2; 1961, c. 360, s. 20; 1975, c. 716, s. 5; 1981, c. 938, s. 3; 1993, c. 440, s. 9; c. 539, ss. 351-353; 1994, Ex. Sess., c. 24, s. 14(c); 2013-360, s. 18B.14(i).)

North Carolina General Statute § 20-183.8

Infractions and criminal offenses for violations of inspection requirements.

(a) Infractions. – A person who does any of the following commits an infraction and, if found responsible, is liable for a penalty of up to fifty dollars ($50.00):

(1) Operates a motor vehicle that is subject to inspection under this Part on a highway or public vehicular area in the State when the vehicle has not been inspected in accordance with this Part, as evidenced by the vehicle’s lack of a current electronic inspection authorization or otherwise.

(2) Allows an electronic inspection authorization to be issued to a vehicle owned or operated by that person, knowing that the vehicle was not inspected before the electronic inspection authorization was issued or was not inspected properly.

(3) Issues an electronic inspection authorization on a vehicle, knowing or having reasonable grounds to know that an inspection of the vehicle was not performed or was performed improperly. A person who is cited for a civil penalty under G.S. 20-183.8B for an emissions violation involving the inspection of a vehicle may not be charged with an infraction under this subdivision based on that same vehicle.

(4) Alters the original certified configuration or data link connectors of a vehicle in such a way as to make an emissions inspection by analysis of data provided by on-board diagnostic (OBD) equipment inaccurate or impossible.

(b) Defenses to Infractions. – Any of the following is a defense to a violation under subsection (a) of this section:

(1) The vehicle was continuously out of State for at least the 30 days preceding the date the electronic inspection authorization expired and a current electronic inspection authorization was obtained within 10 days after the vehicle came back to the State.

(2) The vehicle displays a dealer license plate or a transporter plate, the dealer repossessed the vehicle or otherwise acquired the vehicle within the last 10 days, and the vehicle is being driven from its place of acquisition to the dealer’s place of business or to an inspection station.

(3) Repealed by Session Laws 1997-29, s. 5.

(4) The charged infraction is described in subdivision (a)(1) of this section, the vehicle is subject to a safety inspection or an emissions inspection and the vehicle owner establishes in court that the vehicle was inspected after the citation was issued and within 30 days of the expiration date of the inspection sticker that was on the vehicle or the electronic inspection authorization was issued to the vehicle when the citation was issued.

(b1) A person who performs a safety inspection without a license, as required under G.S. 20-183.4, or an emissions inspection without a license, as required under G.S. 20-183.4A, is guilty of a Class 3 misdemeanor.

(c) Felony. – A person who does any of the following commits a Class I felony:

(1) Forges an inspection sticker or inspection receipt.

(2) Buys, sells, issues, or possesses a forged inspection sticker or electronic inspection authorization.

(3) Buys, sells, issues, or possesses an electronic inspection authorization other than as the result of either of the following:

a. Having a license as an inspection station, a self-inspector, or an inspection mechanic and obtaining the electronic inspection authorization from the Division through an electronic authorization vendor in the course of business.

b. A vehicle inspection in which the vehicle passed the inspection or for which the vehicle received a waiver.

(4) Solicits or accepts anything of value in order to pass a vehicle that fails a safety or emissions inspection.

(5) Fails a vehicle for any reason not authorized by law. (1965, c. 734, s. 1; 1967, c. 692, s. 3; 1969, c. 179, s. 1; c. 620; 1973, cc. 909, 1322; 1975, c. 716, s. 5; 1979, 2nd Sess., c. 1180, s. 4; 1985, c. 764, s. 23; 1985 (Reg. Sess., 1986), c. 852, s. 17; 1993 (Reg. Sess., 1994), c. 754, s. 1; 1997-29, s. 5; 1999-452, s. 25; 2001-504, s. 13; 2007-503, s. 14; 2009-319, s. 5.)

Call us at (336) 379-0539 or contact us to schedule a free, in-depth consultation with our experienced lawyers. Our attorney in Greensboro is here to help you with your registration ticket. And if you have an insurance ticket, our Greensboro attorney will work through the nuances of fighting this case for you!