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USRider ® Equestrian Motor Plan
Hitch Up! e-Magazine • Fall 2009
By tom Scheve Hauling Hints
Trailer-Buying Tips Part 2: Taking Delivery
After you buy
a trailer, you need
to meet certain
requirements before
you hit the road.
you’ve signed the papers and
written the check — the trailer is now
yours. But before you hitch it up
and hit the road, you’ll need to meet
certain legal requirements. here’s a
checklist.
❏ pay the fees: Some dealers will
take care of the tax, title, and registration
fees; some don’t. If your dealer
handles this for you, the fees will usually
be added onto your final invoice
total. If you’ve financed the trailer, the
dealer will likely add this fee into the
total before getting approval for the
final financed amount. the dealer will
then pay the taxes and title fees, and
furnish you with the license plate.
❏ obtain the title: Since the title is
issued by each state and takes some
time, it may be mailed with the plate
and registration, especially if you live
in different state from where the trailer
was purchased. In that case, the dealer
should provide you with a 30-day temporary
tag and registration.
❏ obtain the bill of sale: your
bill of sale will include the name and
address of the seller and buyer, trailer
make and model, vehicle identification
heIdI NylANd photo
number (vIN), and selling price. If a
trade was used as part of the payment,
the bill of sale will state the trade value.
Sales tax will be based only on the
sale’s cash portion.
❏ or, obtain the Statement of
origin: Some manufacturers and
dealers don’t collect tax, title, and registration
fees. If the trailer is new, the
dealer may instead provide you with
a manufacturers Statement of origin
(called the co or mSo) along with a
bill of sale and a temporary tag. the
co looks and acts like a title. It’s issued
by the manufacturer and contains all
the information required for a state to
issue a title to the first owner.
take the co and bill of sale to your
local license bureau to pay the taxes
and plate fees, and to obtain a license
plate. the co will be forwarded to the
state and a title will be sent back to you
within a few weeks. the license bureau
will give you the tags right away.
❏ report trailer weight: Before
paying for your tags, tell the licensing
agent you’re pulling a horse trailer,
and report the weight. Use the trailer’s
Gross vehicle Weight Rating. your
actual weight will vary, depending on
how many horses and cargo you’ll
carry, but it’ll always be less than the
GvWR. the license bureau will register
this weight on your registration and
charge you accordingly. (Note that if
you’re ever stopped, you’ll face a stiff
fine if you’re caught pulling more than
your registered weight.)
❏ obtain a license plate: check
what your state requires to get a
license plate. It varies from state to
state. Some states don’t require residents
to register trailers of any kind.
others don’t require registering trailers
under a certain (empty) weight. others
don’t require a title to get plates.
❏ obtain a driver’s license: check
your state law requirements as to what
type of driver’s license you’ll need to
pull your rig. the federal government
has specific laws that govern all states
under the Federal motor carrier Safety
Regulations for interstate travel.
But many states have additional
laws as to what type of licensing you’ll
need. For example, North carolina
requires you to have a class A license
(commercial or noncommercial) if your
trailer alone is rated 10,001 pounds
GvWR or more. USR
Tom Scheve owns EquiSpirit Trailers
with his wife, Neva Kittrell Scheve.
They’ve written three books on horse
trailers, including the nationally recognized
textbook the complete Guide to
Buying, maintaining, and Servicing a
horse trailer. They reside in Southern
Pines, North Carolina. For more information,
call (877) 575-1771, send an
e-mail to tom@equispirit.com, or visit
www.equispirit.com.
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