Towing an Oregon Trailer in California
Dapper Dave
are in Alaska, where we lived before we retired. We have a place
in Oregon where we are now spending our summers.
We have a utility trailer in Oregon. Oregon does not license
small utility trailers. We need to go down to California to pick
up some stuff, and the easiest way to do that would be to haul
the trailer down there.
The problem is that California requires licenses on trailers.
How can I find out whether we can legally haul our unlicensed
Oregon trailer down to CA and back?
I can't find a web site like "Ask the California Highway Patrol"
<g>.
--
Dave
Ralph
Dave
Try http://www.chp.ca.gov/html/contact.html
But understand that the person you talk to probably will not -KNOW-
the correct answer
Does Alaska require plates? If so, Calf may nail you for not having it
registered in your home state
If you were Oregon residents you could fight (and almost certainly
win) any ticket given in Calf (under the reciprocity rules)
richard
So what you do is buy a temporary tag.
But legally, california has to accept it that way.
Being neighboring states, Ca. is probably well aware of this.
The big problem is, residency. So you should probably carry all the
documents for the trailer to show proof where purchased. I'd also stop in
an Oregon DMV place and ask for a copy of the trailer laws just to show
that nice CHP officer what the law is.
Wisconsin is the same way. No plate required. But it must have lights.
I've seen unplated trailers hauled all over the country and the cops don't
seem to bother them to much.
Another thing you could do is, once you're inside Ca. stop at a local DMV
office and ask for a "Trip permit". Usually only a few bucks and good for
like 4 days or so.
Ralph
> So what you do is buy a temporary tag.
> But legally, california has to accept it that way.
> Being neighboring states, Ca. is probably well aware of this.
> The big problem is, residency. So you should probably carry all the
> documents for the trailer to show proof where purchased. I'd also stop in
> an Oregon DMV place and ask for a copy of the trailer laws just to show
> that nice CHP officer what the law is.
>
I'm not saying you are wrong, but the rub is, as I recall, his tow
vehicle isn't registered in Oregon, it's registered in Alaska. He is
not an Oregon resident, but rather Alaska
Make it a whole lot more interesting
>
> Another thing you could do is, once you're inside Ca. stop at a local DMV
> office and ask for a "Trip permit". Usually only a few bucks and good for
> like 4 days or so.-
That might be a good idea
richard
Might also be possible to have a plate mailed to him.
Since it is a utility trailer, that should be no big deal.
When I needed to renew my wisconsin plate, I asked the DMV if they could
mail it to me. All I needed to do was change the mailing address.
After I had the sticker, change the mailing address back to wisconsin.
Saved going back to wisconsin from florida just for a little sticker.
Bill McKee
"Ralph" <n7...@callsign.net> wrote in message
news:7ddea7c7-fd68-4710...@k13g2000prh.googlegroups.com...
Yreka has a DMV office. Near to the walmart. Same shopping center.
nothermark
wrote:
depending, you might want to rent a U-haul for the trip or check on
Maine as I understand they do plates with a very liberal policy.
Robert Bonomi
The _law_ is fairly clear on the matter -- the rules of the state
where the vehicle 'lives' for more than half the year -- it's so-
called "place of permanent residence -- (or wherever the owner so
declares, by registration/licensing, etc. if it does -not- spend
more than half the year in a given state) govern, insofar as any/
all 'administrative' requirements go. ('operational' rules, like
speed limits, which roads one can/cannot travel on, etc. _are_ the
sole purview of the 'local' state.)
However, getting a local Calif cop or CHiP to recognize the situation
*is* problematic. When the 'foreign' state allows something that the
local one does not, it _is_ common, unfortunately, to have to prove
it in court, to make the problem go away.
_AND_, you have some additional issues to deal with -- e.g., can you
provide, on demand by the LEO that stops you, adequate "legal proof"
that said trailer (being towed by an Alaska-titled/licensed vehicle)
_does_, in fact, 'live' in Oregon most of the year? (for that matter,
what are _Alaska's_ rules on the matter? -- it might be simpler to
claim the trailer 'lives' there, along with the RV. :)
Thus, the real question is "how much hassle are you willing to endure
to 'prove' that you are operating 'legally'?"
Getting 'temporary', or 'transit' tags (from Calif.) would be a way
to minimize, and probably eliminate, the possibility of hassles.
Lone Haranguer
LZ
Pegleg
> Thus, the real question is "how much hassle are you willing to endure
> to 'prove' that you are operating 'legally'?"
>
> Getting 'temporary', or 'transit' tags (from Calif.) would be a way
> to minimize, and probably eliminate, the possibility of hassles.
With no licensing or registration how can you
prove the trailer isn't stolen?
Robert Bonomi
And if a LEO decides to run the plate, for -any- reason, the organic waste
will *really* hit the rotary impeller.
Robert Bonomi
Maybe it's itemized on a 'personal property tax' bill. :)
Presumably there is a 'serial number' on the trailer, somewhere.
Lone Haranguer
one, I registered it as home-built, value of materials, $15.
As farm trailers, they didn't even have to be licensed but when I did
take one on the road or loan one out, one plate was all I needed.
No way would the registration have shown the plate was on a different
trailer.
LZ
Lone Haranguer
from an old Studebaker and two from the front end of '36 Fords.
Picked them up from farmers for a couple of bucks and built the frames.
Usually just used to haul wood but a couple did get to haul deer back
from Montana and Wyoming.
LZ
Mickey
wrote:
> We are fulltimers. Our drivers licenses and vehicle registrations
Caveat, unless rules have changed, no license required on trailers <1700#
gross. Wouldn't take much to exceed that unless trailer and load are
quite small.
Mickey
nothermark
When you do a homebuilt registration in NY you get a serial number.
Make your own tag. ;-)
David Kelly
> I did the same thing a number of years ago when residing in Oregon. I
> called the Washington State Patrol and asked them about it. They told
> me that the WSP knew about the Oregon laws, and not to worry about it
>
> OTOH, I was driving an Oregon plated vehicle.
Exactly. TN has similar no license for trailer rule. With an AL plate on
the tow vehicle one can get away without a plate on small trailers in TN
(think this is same as the Alaska couple in OR), but one must have a TN
plate on the tow vehicle to get away without a plate on the trailer in AL.
Trailer license plates are pretty cheap in AL, no excuse not to have one.
Dapper Dave
Followup:
I called a CHP office in northern California, where I would be
traveling. They gave me an officer to talk to.
He said it would not be a problem, that they see it all the time.
He said it is very unlikely that I would be pulled over for
having no license plate on a small trailer and if I were pulled
over the officer would see that the tow vehicle is from a
"foreign jurisdiction" and accept the fact that Oregon does not
require plates on these trailers.
As it turns out, I borrowed a pickup truck for the trip and left
the trailer home. That allowed me to drive the 1,100 mile round
trip mostly at 70 MPH rather than 55 MPH.
--
Dave