Texas Vehicle Inspection

[bigjim]

That was my thinking but I know you can run across some LEO's that are not knowledgeable or on rare occaision have an agenda.

 

I made it through with no issues.

Edited April 16, 2016 by bigjim

[SparkyJL]

Our fifth wheel is due for inspection and license plate renewal next month. We are full timers and are in a small town. We will be stationary here till early spring. Do I have to renew if we aren't on the road? If I do who can inspect it? I don't really want to pack up and drive the 100 miles one way to get it done.

Thanks

[Barbaraok]

Are you in Texas? If not, just renew online and check the box that says you are out of state, then you have 3 days after returning to state to get in inspected. Our MH hasn't been in Texas since 2012.

 

Barb

[SparkyJL]

Yes, we are in Texas. That's why I don't know what to do. Sure don't want to pack up and drive to the nearest RV service 100 miles from here then turn around and head back.

[TXiceman]

Yes, we are in Texas. That's why I don't know what to do. Sure don't want to pack up and drive to the nearest RV service 100 miles from here then turn around and head back.

Why are you going to the nearest RV Service center? Most state inspection station can do the trailer/motorhome. The problem is finding one with a parking lot you can get into. The one we used in Tomball the last two times has me park in the lot adjacent to his facility, he walks over and gets the info and checks the RV..

 

If you have a gas motorhome, you will need to get a shop that you can get inside the bay. The counties that require a exhaust check are the biggest PITA.

 

Ken

Edited July 26, 2016 by TXiceman

[SparkyJL]

That answers one question...who can inspect it. The other question is Do I have to have it inspected if I am stationary? We don't plan to move till March. We live in our fifth wheel full time and I don't want to secure everything and hook up just for an inspection.

[RickW]

The biggest issue with not renewing now is when you do get ready to renew your registration it will have expired more than 6 months ago. If I remember correctly If your registration is expired for 6 or more months then you must go to the county tax office (after getting it inspected first) for the renewal instead of by mail/online.

 

I had a similar issue last year and was unable to get the trailer inspected in order to renew the registration. I did not worry about it since the trailer was not on the road due to other circumstances. I had to stand in line at the tax office to get the renewal done this year. Luckily I had to go there for another vehicle due to the inspection tech mistyping a "G" as a "6" in my vin number, but that is another story.

[bigjim]

In checking with the Tax office about my voter registration I took the opportunity to ask the clerk about the self certification that I am out of state traveling and cannot get the inspection. She then said I could send in the registration renewal form, proof of insurance, a check for the proper amount, and include a note stating I am out of state and send it back to the Tax office and they will send me my renewal sticker. I an nervous but I did it yesterday. If it ends up working I will report it back on this topic in I estimate about 2 weeks.

 

Has anyone else done it this way successfully? I will say the Polk Cty. Tax office has pretty much been cracker jack in dealing with vehicle registration in all the years I have been using them as an SKP, which is almost 20yrs.

[Ronbo]

I do it all the time.

[rockintom]

Forgive me if this has been covered already. We reregistered our vehicles a few months ago when we were out of state using the internet and bypassing the state inspection requirements. OK so now we are in TX and I ran out and got the state inspections. The inspector scrapped off the old/very outdated stickers and said you are good to go. Got to thinking about it and since now there are no "inspection" sticker on the windshield, a cop would have to run a registration to tell if you were current with your state inspection. And with us FTers are the exception to the rule and the vast minority, most have to get the state before the reregistration, the need for the LEO to check on state inspections would be minimal. Now it's not so easy to just glance at the sticker to see if you not in compliance. Hmmmm. Better chance of not getting a ticket as before, but if you got stopped for some reason, then you'd be in trouble.

 

I'm I missing something here or I'm I thinking right? Of course, being compliant gives me a good feeling and I'm able to sleep good at night!

Edited September 21, 2016 by rockintom

[bobsallyh]

rockintom, you are right on the money. It is all in the registration sticker now. LEO needs to run it to see if it was inspected.

Bigjim we have done it on line ever since they started the new deal with being out of state. Never has been a problem but you will probably receive a letter later saying you aren't inspected. We just put that in the round file, in other words "deep six it".

[Barbaraok]

In checking with the Tax office about my voter registration I took the opportunity to ask the clerk about the self certification that I am out of state traveling and cannot get the inspection. She then said I could send in the registration renewal form, proof of insurance, a check for the proper amount, and include a note stating I am out of state and send it back to the Tax office and they will send me my renewal sticker. I an nervous but I did it yesterday. If it ends up working I will report it back on this topic in I estimate about 2 weeks.

 

Has anyone else done it this way successfully? I will say the Polk Cty. Tax office has pretty much been cracker jack in dealing with vehicle registration in all the years I have been using them as an SKP, which is almost 20yrs.

 

Why didn't you just renew online? It is so simple - we have ALWAYS done it that way. Plus, when the renewal lands in my box at Escapees Mail Center they send me an email telling me it is in so I can get it sent to where ever we are.

[bigjim]

I may not have made my point clear. I have done it on line in the past but was not sure when I would be on line again AND the tax office said I could just mail it in like in the past without the inspection IF I included a note stating I was out of state. That part was brand new to me and I have taken the chance of trying it. We may have folks that can't or don't go on line at all and it would be useful information. I have never heard of anyone doing it that way before so I was asking if anyone had tried it before.

 

I hope I was able to explain it more clearly. If it works I will report on it. If it doesn't work I may have caused myself more trouble.

 

I sort of believe there should be a way for people to do stuff without having to go on line. In my case I have to go somewhere I can get wifi and have access to a printer.

Edited September 21, 2016 by bigjim

[Blues]

I agree that it will be good to find out how to do this other than online.

 

Also, I don't want to use my credit card when I'm on anything but my own secure internet connection, so if I had to rely on public wifi, I'd give real thought to not doing it online. But I don't know why you would need a printer.

[bigjim]

Someone with better memory will help but as I recall I printed out a paper "receipt" ? or something as proof that I had done it on line. That was a year ago so don't hold me to it. I think I did it at a library where I could use the printer.

[Barbaraok]

Why print it out, they send you an email, which you can save to computer, or even better your smart phone. In 10 yrs I have NEVERTHELESS printed it out. Of course I always renew a month ahead so I have 60 days to get it in and in place.

[bigjim]

What smart phone? I don't have no stinkin' smart phone. I don't want to save it to the computer at the library either. I know I am old but in some cases I just like to have a piece of paper in my little hand. Like in the outhouse, sometimes paper is just the greatest. To be clear I am pulling your chain just a little here. Nothing wrong with your way of doing it but it is nice to have an alternative.

 

I am editing today 10/6 rather than adding another post. I just got my new sticker so sending in the note stating I am out state worked. Nice to know the alternative can work. I also got letter in the post stating I would not be getting a renewal notice on my TT which is due at the end of Nov and need the inspection so I will be contacting Tax office to clarify that since I will still be out of state.

Edited October 6, 2016 by bigjim

[bigjim]

Just sending a note stating I am out of state worked for both the truck in Sep. and the trailer in Oct. Nice to know that the alternative to on line works. (at least through the Livingston tax office)

[Al F]

We've gone back into Texas 8 months to a year after tags expired and have never been stopped yet. We're always a little nervous about it. We have a special place we like to go to get the truck and fifth wheel inspected.

You can get your registration renewal w/o the inspection if you are out of state and the get the inspection when you get back in the state. You could get stopped out of state and questioned if your registration has expired. You also may have to go to your county tax office get your registration renewed if it has expired.

 

More info here: http://twostepsonesticker.com/motorists

 

 

Special Circumstances Out of State Motorists

If your vehicle is currently out of state and you are unable to complete a Texas vehicle inspection in order to renew your registration, you may self-certify that the vehicle is out of state and will be permitted to register online, by mail, or in person.

If you renew your vehicle registration using the out-of-state self-certification option, a remark will be placed on your vehicle record indicating that an inspection is still due. Once you return to the state, you must complete a Texas vehicle inspection within three days of arrival at your home, duty station, or destination. It is very important that you keep the VIR issued after completing your inspection in case you are stopped by law enforcement before the remark is removed from your vehicle record, which takes about 48 hours. The remark will be removed only upon payment of the state’s portion of the inspection fee and verification of inspection at your county tax office.

Edited October 28, 2016 by Al Florida

[bigjim]

On 10/28/2016 at 8:09 AM, bigjim said:

Just sending a note stating I am out of state worked for both the truck in Sep. (2016) and the trailer in Oct. Nice to know that the alternative to on line works. (at least through the Livingston tax office)

  Just did the same thing on the truck this year (2017) and it worked flawlessly again.

This time they said in the future I would need to include a photo copy of my drivers license and not just the DL no. on the check.

Edited October 18, 2017 by bigjim