Categories: Autos

How to Keep Your Car Legal and up to Date In Any State You Live In

January 27, 2021

Having a car is essential for you to get to work, the grocery store, and all the other destinations that you need to go to. However, keeping your car legal is a constant concern. Regardless of what state you reside in, here are some of our best tips for staying legal and up-to-date with your vehicle.

Know Whether Your State Requires a Safety Inspection or Not

As of right now, there are seven states that don’t require any form of safety inspection for vehicles. These include South Carolina, South Dakota, Montana, Minnesota, Iowa, Arkansas, and Alaska. Some other states have limited requirements in regards to safety inspections. For example, the majority of vehicle owners in the states of Mississippi and Michigan don’t have to get an annual safety inspection. Rather, only those in certain circumstances, such as people who rebuilt a car from salvage parts, are required to undergo a safety inspection.

Know Window Tinting Regulations

People can choose to tint their car windows for a number of reasons. More privacy, less sun glare, and protecting against interior sun damage are just a few. Each state has its own laws regarding the level of car window tinting that they allow. The percentage is known as the visible light transmission or VLT. This designates how much natural light is allowed into the vehicle through the tinting. To stay legal, you’ll need to have your after-market tint within your state’s legal limits.

Registration Is a Must Everywhere

It doesn’t matter if you live in California or Pennsylvania. You must take the time to register your vehicle. This registration process allows state and federal agencies to recognize you as the legal owner of the vehicle. Although state agencies used to supply vehicle owners with a registration sticker denoting their current registration year, this is no longer a practice. Rather, vehicle owners are given the opportunity to print off their proof of registration when renewing it online.

Every Vehicle Needs to Be Titled

Each state also requires that you go through the titling process to receive a title for your vehicle. This usually isn’t too difficult as the car dealership or previous owner should have the title on hand. However, when you purchase a new vehicle, you’ll need to update the title to show yourself as the vehicle owner.

Keeping your car legal is not too difficult to do. As long as you know what’s required of you, it’s easy to execute these steps. Just be sure to pay attention to your local state legislation regarding the basic legal requirements above.

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