Late in July 2020 I found a small roof rack trailer for sale in a neighboring town. It came with a canoe and the price was reasonable. I had been eyeing a trailer purchase for some time because, well, let’s not get into this now. The reasoning is multi-faceted and warrants a separate post.
So, I contacted the seller and we met so that I could inspect the setup. The seller gave me what looked like a copy of the Certificate of Origin. He asserted that this was all he had and he was able to register it. I quickly wrote up a Bill of Sale, and I towed it home.
Up to this point, I hadn’t really thought much about what it would take to register a trailer, other than that I wanted to do it. So the research started.
Registration Requirements
The RMV website does not really spell out the registration requirements for trailers purchased from an individual – they are the same as for other vehicles:
- A completed Registration and Title Application
- The previous owner’s certificate of title or the previous owner’s registration and bill of sale for vehicles that are exempt because of its age
- Applicable fee
The site further mentions that trailers with a gross weight of less than 3,000 pounds do not require a title (mine has 1,200). And the person registering must be present in person (lawful presence when registering/titling your vehicle).
With this information, I downloaded the application, filled it out, and printed it. There is also this checklist on the RMV site. It mentions proof of insurance. I did only a superficial search on insurance requirements for trailers, something that would come back and bite me later.
The first hit that Google brought up was an insurance site, and it said this:
Although it’s not a legal requirement to maintain insurance on your trailer, …
At this point I stopped reading and decided that I wouldn’t need an insurance stamp on the application form. I had the rest – a bill of sale AND the certificate of origin signed over to me.
So I went to the website and began the process of getting an appointment at one of the RMV offices that were open during the pandemic. The ones that were open for business to the public were all at least an hour away, so I decided I would take the Harley and pick the one with the most scenic ride – Plymouth, MA.
First RMV Visit
The earliest appointment that I found came with a 2 week wait time. I booked it. During those initial 2 weeks, I made several trips with the trailer and two canoes, a couple around town to the Charles River, one to Lake Cochituate in Framingham on a busy summer weekend. I made sure I had the paperwork with me. Luckily, I did not get pulled over, so I can’t tell you what would have happened.
Finally the appointment came. It was a warm August day and I arrived on time for my appointment. I was a little irritated that there was a line of people wrapped around the building, but I wasn’t in a hurry, so I waited the 45 minutes or so until I was finally called inside. Cerberus awaited me in the lobby and demanded to review my paperwork. After a brief glance, he pointed at my Certificate of Origin and said: “We don’t take copies”. I tried to explain that this was all the previous owner had given me, and that the trailer had previously been registered in Massachusetts, but he wanted no part of this. He would not let me in. I had to ride back with nothing accomplished, having wasted half a day in the process.
Regrouping
The things I looked into to resolve this were
- reaching out to the seller again and ask him to double-check for the original title (negative) or his registration (also negative – already discarded)
- researching the home-built path for trailers (seemed sketchy – I had ordered a list of accessory parts from the manufacturer already that cost more than what I had paid for the trailer, but would this be sufficient evidence?)
- researching out-of-state registrations
The best option seemed to be to ask a friend in New Hampshire to register it temporarily and then sell it back to me. With the NH registration, so said many forum posts, I would be able to register it in MA.
Duplicate Certificate of Origin
But just when I was about to reach out to my friend, I remembered that the folks at the manufacturer had been friendly when I ordered parts – shouldn’t they be able to send a duplicate certificate? I called, and – bingo. They took my information and promised to send a duplicate Certificate of Origin. Meanwhile, I scheduled several new appointments at the RMVs in Worcester and Fall River (just in case, using different email addresses and phone numbers).
A week passed and the envelope did not arrive. It seemed that they had forgotten to mail it. I cancelled my appointments and called again. This time, communication worked better, and the letter with the new certificate arrived within a week.
Second RMV Visit
Once I had the document, I contacted the seller so that he could sign it over to me again. Unfortunately he was out of state and we could not meet until Friday that week. It was already late in August by now. I scheduled more RMV appointments, but I had found out that the RMV in Milford, MA offered drop-off service for application packages and would turn them around in a few days, much shorter than the wait for an in-person appointment at another location. Once I had the signature that Friday, it was 3:30 pm. I checked the hours of the service center on their website – 9 to 5 pm – and was on my way with the Harley to the RMV office. I arrived there at 4:15 pm, but before I could get in line, I was told that drop-off packages were only accepted until 4 pm. So I rode home again, having accomplished nothing – a familiar feeling by now.
Third RMV Visit
Undeterred, I returned first thing the following Monday morning, right when they opened. I already had the instruction sheet and the bar code that I needed to scan with my phone from the Friday visit, and within 10 minutes I was inside.
Once again, someone reviewed my application documents, and once again they were rejected. I learned that I needed an insurance stamp after all, even though insurance was not required.
So I hopped on the bike and went to the AAA office one town over that would stamp my form. On the way there I was nearly killed, but I made it to the AAA. They were open for business without an appointment and willing to provide the required stamp. I learned that, even though a policy it not required and there is no cost, a trailer rider needs to be added to the auto insurance.
Fourth RMV Visit
Back to the RMV I went. I briefly considered registering there via SMS prior to leaving the AAA location, but dismissed the thought as something that could cause embarrassment if the wait was short and I wasn’t there yet. Mistake. When I arrived, there were 20 people ahead of me.
And on the way I lost the AM/FM of my Harley! I thought I would just order a replacement and not worry about it. This was another mistake – I had not just lost the antenna, but also the stud, and replacing it turned out to be a costly and complicated project. Once I realized this, I even returned that same evening and rode the stretch of Interstate 3 times, but I was not able to find it again.
Anyway, the wait ended up being less than an hour and I was finally able to drop off my application package late that Monday morning.
Fifth RMV Visit
Wednesday afternoon I received a phone call that my application was processed and that, after payment, I could pick up my plate and registration. This was a 4:15pm. Knowing that it would take me 30 minutes to get there, I quickly sent payment and got in the car (it was raining, so no riding that day).
I arrived at 4:55 and stormed inside, mask on. My envelope was ready and I received
- one temporary plate (they were out of metal license plates)
- one temporary registration (to go with the plate)
- the Certificate of Origin
The woman who handed me the documents was kind enough to mention that the Certificate of Origin was not needed because THEY HAD THE ORIGINAL ON FILE!
I broke out into a hysterical laughter. So much gas wasted.
Conclusion
The permanent plate will arrive in the mail, I was told, so I won’t have to go back again for this.
The take-away for others and myself for future trailer purchases and the Massachusetts trailer registration process:
- If the trailer was registered in Massachusetts before, you DO NOT NEED A CERTIFICATE of ORIGIN!
- Do not bother bringing a copy that the previous owner may have had – it will confuse the heck out of RMV guard dogs
- If your trailer was NOT previously registered in MA, you will need the original or a duplicate Certificate of Origin, or the previous registration. Make sure you have one or the other!