Sec. 14-12. Motor vehicle registration. Application. Issuance by dealers. Misrepresentation. Registration number and certificate. Requirements for registration. Temporary registration.
Sec. 14-12. Motor vehicle registration. Application. Issuance by dealers. Misrepresentation. Registration number and certificate. Requirements for registration. Temporary registration. (a) No motor vehicle shall be operated or towed on
any highway, except as otherwise expressly provided, unless it is registered with the
commissioner, provided any motor vehicle may be towed for repairs or necessary work
if it bears the markers of a licensed and registered dealer, manufacturer or repairer and
provided any motor vehicle which is validly registered in another state may, for a period
of sixty days following establishment by the owner of residence in this state, be operated
on any highway without first being registered with the commissioner. Except as otherwise provided in this subsection (1) a person commits an infraction if he registers a
motor vehicle he does not own or if he operates, or allows the operation of, an unregistered motor vehicle on a public highway or (2) a resident of this state who operates a
motor vehicle he owns with marker plates issued by another state shall be fined not less
than one hundred fifty dollars nor more than three hundred dollars. If the owner of a
motor vehicle previously registered on an annual or biennial basis, the registration of
which expired not more than thirty days previously, operates or allows the operation of
such a motor vehicle, he shall be fined the amount designated for the infraction of failure
to renew a registration, but his right to retain his operator's license shall not be affected.
No operator other than the owner shall be subject to penalty for the operation of such
a previously registered motor vehicle. As used in this subsection, the term "unregistered
motor vehicle" includes any vehicle that is not eligible for registration by the commissioner due to the absence of necessary equipment or other characteristics of the vehicle
that make it unsuitable for highway operation, unless the operation of such vehicle is
expressly permitted by another provision of this chapter or chapter 248.
(b) To obtain a motor vehicle registration, except as provided in subsection (c) of
this section, the owner shall file in the office of the commissioner an application signed
by him and containing such information and proof of ownership as the commissioner
may require. The application shall be made on blanks furnished by the commissioner.
The blanks shall be in such form and contain such provisions and information as the
commissioner may determine.
(c) The commissioner may, for the more efficient administration of the commissioner's duties, appoint licensed dealers meeting qualifications established by the commissioner pursuant to regulations adopted in accordance with the provisions of chapter 54,
to issue new registrations for passenger motor vehicles and motorcycles, campers, camp
trailers or trucks with a gross vehicle weight up to and including twenty-six thousand
pounds when they are sold. The commissioner shall charge such dealer a fee of ten
dollars for each new dealer issue form furnished for the purposes of this subsection. A
person purchasing a motor vehicle or motorcycle from a dealer so appointed and registering the motor vehicle or motorcycle pursuant to this section shall file an application with
the dealer and pay, to the dealer, a fee in accordance with the provisions of subsection (a)
or (b) of section 14-49. The commissioner shall prescribe the time and manner in which
the application and fee shall be transmitted to the commissioner.
(d) A motor vehicle registration certificate issued upon an application containing
any material false statement is void from the date of its issue and shall be surrendered,
upon demand, with any number plate or plates, to the commissioner. Any money paid
for the registration certificate shall be forfeited to the state. No person shall obtain or
attempt to obtain any registration for another by misrepresentation or impersonation
and any registration so obtained shall be void. The commissioner may require each
applicant for a motor vehicle registration to furnish personal identification satisfactory
to the commissioner and may require any applicant who has established residence in
this state for more than thirty days to obtain a motor vehicle operator's license, in accordance with the provisions of subsection (b) of section 14-36, or an identification card
issued pursuant to section 1-1h. Any person who violates any provision of this subsection
and any person who fails to surrender a falsely obtained motor vehicle registration or
number plate or plates upon the demand of the commissioner shall be fined not more
than two hundred dollars.
(e) The commissioner may register any motor vehicle under the provisions of this
chapter, may assign a distinguishing registration number to the registered motor vehicle
and may then issue a certificate of registration to the owner. A certificate of registration
shall contain the registration number assigned to the motor vehicle and its vehicle identification number and shall be in such form and contain such further information as the
commissioner determines.
(f) (1) The commissioner may refuse to register or issue a certificate of title for a
motor vehicle or class of motor vehicles if he determines that the characteristics of the
motor vehicle or class of motor vehicles make it unsafe for highway operation.
(2) The commissioner shall not register a motor vehicle if he knows that the motor
vehicle's equipment fails to comply with the provisions of this chapter, provided nothing
contained in this section shall preclude the commissioner from issuing one or more
temporary registrations for a motor vehicle not previously registered in this state or from
issuing a temporary registration for a motor vehicle under a trade name without a certified
copy of the notice required by section 35-1.
(3) The commissioner shall not register any motor vehicle, except a platform truck
the motive power of which is electricity, or a tractor equipped with solid tires, if it is
not equipped with lighting devices as prescribed by this chapter. The registration of any
motor vehicle which is not equipped with such prescribed lighting devices is void and
money paid for the registration shall be forfeited to the state. Nothing in this subdivision
shall prevent the commissioner, at his discretion, from registering a motor vehicle not
equipped with certain lighting devices if the operation of the vehicle is restricted to
daylight use.
(4) The commissioner shall not register any motor vehicle or a combination of a
motor vehicle and a trailer or semitrailer which exceeds the limits specified in section
14-267a.
(5) On or after October 1, 1984, no motor vehicle registration shall be issued by
the commissioner for any motorcycle unless the application for registration is accompanied by sufficient proof, as determined by the commissioner, that the motorcycle is
insured for the amounts required by section 14-289f.
(6) The commissioner shall not register any motor vehicle which is subject to the
federal heavy vehicle use tax imposed under Section 4481 of the Internal Revenue Code
of 1954, or any subsequent corresponding internal revenue code of the United States,
as from time to time amended, if the applicant fails to furnish proof of payment of such
tax, in a form prescribed by the Secretary of the Treasury of the United States.
(g) The commissioner may elect not to register any motor vehicle which is ten or
more model years old and which has not been previously registered in this state until
the same has been presented, as directed by the commissioner, at the main office or a
branch office of the Department of Motor Vehicles or to any designated official emissions inspection station or other business or firm, authorized by the Commissioner of
Motor Vehicles to conduct safety inspections, and has passed the inspection as to its
safety features as required by the commissioner. When a motor vehicle owned by a
resident of this state is garaged in another jurisdiction and cannot be conveniently presented at an office of the Department of Motor Vehicles, an authorized emissions inspection station or other facility, the commissioner may accept an inspection made by authorities in such other jurisdiction or by appropriate military authorities, provided the
commissioner determines that such inspection is comparable to that conducted by the
Department of Motor Vehicles. If the commissioner authorizes the contractor that operates the system of official emissions inspection stations or other business or firm to
conduct the safety inspections required by this subsection, the commissioner may authorize the contractor or other business or firm to charge a fee, not to exceed fifteen dollars,
for each such inspection. The commissioner may authorize any motor vehicle dealer or
repairer, licensed in accordance with section 14-52 and meeting qualifications established by the commissioner, to perform an inspection required by this section or to make
repairs to any motor vehicle that has failed an initial safety inspection and to certify to
the commissioner that the motor vehicle is in compliance with the safety and equipment
standards for registration. No such authorized dealer or repairer shall charge any additional fee to make such certification to the commissioner. If the commissioner authorizes
any such dealer or repairer to conduct safety inspections, such licensee may provide
written certification to the commissioner, in such form and manner as the commissioner
prescribes, as to compliance of any motor vehicle in its inventory with safety and equipment standards and such certification may be accepted by the commissioner as meeting
the inspection requirements of this subsection.
(h) The commissioner shall not register any motor vehicle unless it meets the equipment related registration requirements contained in sections 14-80, 14-100, 14-100a,
14-100b, 14-106a and 14-275.
(i) The commissioner may issue a temporary registration to the owner of a motor
vehicle. The application for a temporary registration shall conform to the provisions
of this section. A temporary registration may be issued for a time determined by the
commissioner and may be renewed from time to time at the discretion of the commissioner. The fee for a temporary registration or any renewal thereof shall be as provided
in subsection (n) of section 14-49.
(j) The commissioner may issue a special use registration to the owner of a motor
vehicle for a period not to exceed thirty days for the sole purpose of driving such vehicle
to another state in which the vehicle is to be registered and exclusively used. The application for such registration shall conform to the provisions of subsection (b) of this section.
The commissioner may issue special use certificates and plates in such form as he may
determine. The special use certificate shall state such limitation on the operation of such
vehicle and shall be carried in the vehicle at all times when it is being operated on any
highway.
(k) Notwithstanding the provisions of subsections (a), (b) and (e) of this section,
the commissioner shall issue to a municipality, as defined in section 7-245, or a regional
solid waste authority comprised of several municipalities, upon receipt of an application
by the municipality or regional solid waste authority, a general distinguishing number
plate for use on a motor vehicle owned or leased by such municipality or regional solid
waste authority.
(1949 Rev., S. 2361; 1957, P.A. 190; 1961, P.A. 233, S. 1; 581, S. 1; 1963, P.A. 520; 550, S. 1; 1967, P.A. 205; 858;
1969, P.A. 701, S. 1; 1971, P.A. 535; 1972, P.A. 284; P.A. 73-134; P.A. 75-577, S. 11, 126; P.A. 79-188, S. 4, 10; P.A.
83-489, S. 1, 17; P.A. 84-254, S. 22, 62; 84-291, S. 2; 84-429, S. 3; P.A. 85-128; 85-181; 85-214; 85-613, S. 145, 154;
P.A. 86-157, S. 1; P.A. 88-270, S. 5, 8; P.A. 89-211, S. 27; P.A. 91-355, S. 2; June Sp. Sess. P.A. 91-13, S. 4, 21; P.A. 93-341, S. 2; P.A. 94-189, S. 2; P.A. 95-260, S. 16, 24; P.A. 98-33, S. 1; P.A. 99-287, S. 1, 9; P.A. 00-169, S. 1; P.A. 01-24,
S. 2, 5; June Sp. Sess. P.A. 01-9, S. 52, 131; P.A. 02-70, S. 70, 71; P.A. 04-199, S. 26; P.A. 05-218, S. 4; P.A. 08-150, S. 4.)
History: 1961 acts amended provision prohibiting registration of vehicle exceeding limits in Sec. 14-268, previous
section having read "the sum of the light weight and carrying capacity of which exceeds," increased the inspection fee in
the last sentence from $1 and deleted provision re not registering a vehicle previously reported as sold for junk and requiring
maintenance of records of such sales for 2 years; 1963 acts added provisions re operation of vehicle registered in another
state for 60 days and providing for operation where registration expired less than 30 days prior to operation on highway;
1967 acts added provision allowing commissioner to issue temporary 10-day registration without regard to inspection
requirements, substituted "is" for "was" in provision re vehicles registered in another state and specified that vehicle "which
has been registered on an annual basis" is allowed 30-day grace period; 1969 act added provision allowing temporary
registration for motor vehicles not previously registered in state and allowed issuance of more than one temporary registration; 1971 act added provision allowing commissioner to refuse registration or title for motor vehicle or class of vehicles
when he determines the vehicle or class to be unsafe for highway operation; 1972 act added Subsec. (b) re issuance of new
registrations by motor vehicle dealers; P.A. 73-134 specified that proof of ownership necessary for registration, and added
provision allowing acceptance of inspection made in another jurisdiction or by military authorities in certain instances;
P.A. 75-577 replaced provisions re fines for violation of registration procedures with references to commission of infraction
and payment of amount not specified; P.A. 79-188 substituted Sec. 14-267a for reference to repealed Sec. 14-268; P.A.
83-489 amended Subsec. (a) to increase inspection fee from $2 to $7; P.A. 84-254 amended Subsec. (a) (now Subsec. (g))
to periodically increase the existing $7 motor vehicle safety features inspection fee to $25 as of July 1, 1993; P.A. 84-291
amended Subsec. (a) (now Subsec. (f)) to prohibit the issuance of a motorcycle registration without proof of liability
insurance, which provision was editorially designated as Subdiv. (5) of Subsec. (f) in keeping with the technical revision
of the section under P.A. 84-429; P.A. 84-429 relettered Subsecs., rephrased provisions, transferred provision concerning
certificates of title to Sec. 14-16(f), added provisions re applications to Subsec. (b) from Sec. 14-42(a), added provisions
re false statements to Subsec. (d) from Sec. 14-43, added provisions re registration certificates to Subsec. (e) from Sec.
14-13(a), added provisions re temporary registrations to Subsec. (i) from Sec. 14-13(c), and made other technical changes;
P.A. 85-128 added Subsec. (f)(6), requiring commissioner not to register any vehicle subject to the federal heavy vehicle
use tax if applicant fails to furnish proof of tax payment; P.A. 85-181 added Subsec. (j), permitting the issuance of municipal
license plates for use on vehicles owned or leased by municipalities; P.A. 85-214 amended Subsec. (c) to permit commissioner to appoint licensed dealers to issue new registrations for motorcycles when sold; P.A. 85-613 amended Subsec. (j)
by changing "may issue" to "shall issue" and adding "as defined in section 7-245, upon receipt of an application by the
municipality"; P.A. 86-157 inserted new Subsec. (j), authorizing the issuance of special use registrations, relettering former
Subsec. accordingly; P.A. 88-270 amended Subsec. (e) to require the registration certificate to contain the vehicle identification number; P.A. 89-211 clarified reference to the Internal Revenue Code of 1986; P.A. 91-355 amended Subsec. (g) to
provide for conduct of inspections at authorized official emissions inspection stations and to require inspection fees collected
at such inspection stations to be deposited in separate safety inspection account within emissions inspection fund; June
Sp. Sess. P.A. 91-13 added fee for each book of twenty-five new dealer issue forms; P.A. 93-341 amended Subsec. (k) to
apply provisions to regional solid waste authorities comprised of several municipalities; P.A. 94-189 amended Subsec.
(g) by adding to the exception "a motor vehicle which has affixed to it a current, valid safety inspection decal issued by
any other state that conducts a safety inspection program which meets the approval of the commissioner" and deleting
obsolete inspection fee schedule of increases; P.A. 95-260 amended Subsec. (g) to provide for conduct of safety inspections
at other facilities authorized by commissioner, effective June 13, 1995; P.A. 98-33 amended Subsec. (a) by replacing
"repairman" with "repairer" and establishing a fine of not less than $150 nor more than $300 for a resident of this state
operating a motor vehicle he owns with marker plates issued by another state; P.A. 99-287 amended Subsec. (g) by limiting
motor vehicles required to have safety inspections prior to registration to those 10 or more model years old and deleting
provisions re new motor vehicles or motor vehicles with a valid safety inspection decal, by deleting provision re presenting
motor vehicle during business hours and adding provision re presenting same as directed by the commissioner, by allowing
a "designated" official emissions inspection station or other "business or firm, except a licensee of the department", to
conduct safety inspections, by deleting provision requiring a $25 fee to be charged for a safety inspection and deposited
into a safety inspection account within the Emissions Inspection Fund, by adding provisions re authorization of entities to
conduct safety inspections, charge an inspection fee and repair vehicles failing such inspections, and by making technical
changes, effective July 1, 1999; P.A. 00-169 amended Subsec. (c) to allow licensed dealers to issue new registrations for
campers, camp trailers or trucks with a gross vehicle weight up to and including 26,000 pounds and made technical changes
for the purposes of gender neutrality; P.A. 01-24 amended Subsec. (g) by changing "shall not" to "may elect not to" re
registration of motor vehicles which are 10 or more model years old and which have not been previously registered in this
state, deleting provision authorizing a licensee of the department to conduct safety inspections on such motor vehicles,
allowing certain motor vehicle dealers and repairers to perform inspections required by section, deleting provision re the
commissioner's issuing temporary registrations without regard to the inspection requirements of the general statutes, and
adding provision re licensee's submission of written certification of compliance of any motor vehicle in its inventory with
safety and equipment standards, effective May 15, 2001; June Sp. Sess. P.A. 01-9 amended Subsec. (c) to increase the fee
for a new dealer issue form from $10 for a book of 25 to $10 for each form, effective July 1, 2001; P.A. 02-70 amended
Subsec. (f)(5) to eliminate requirement that proof of insurance be submitted for renewal of a motorcycle registration and
amended Subsec. (f)(6) to make a technical change and substitute Internal Revenue Code of "1954" for "1986", effective
July 1, 2002; P.A. 04-199 amended Subsec. (i) to eliminate provision permitting commissioner to require deposit from
applicant for temporary registration, to permit temporary registration to be issued for time determined by commissioner
and to establish fee for temporary registration or renewal as provided in Sec. 14-49(n), effective July 1, 2004; P.A. 05-218 amended Subsec. (d) by adding provision authorizing commissioner to require identification for applicant for registration and resident in state for 30 days to obtain an operator's license or identification card, effective July 1, 2005; P.A. 08-150 amended Subsec. (a) to add definition of "unregistered motor vehicle".
See Sec. 12-430 re required proof of paid-up taxes as condition for registration of vehicles.
See Secs. 14-12b, 14-12c re insurance requirements for registration of vehicle.
See Sec. 14-16a re required inspection of older vehicles, antique, rare or special interest vehicles on transfer of ownership.
See Sec. 14-43 re voiding of license for misrepresentation.
See Sec. 14-45 re required notice of change of address.
See Sec. 14-111(h) re licensing and registration penalties imposed against out-of-state violators.
See Sec. 14-215 re penalty for operation of vehicle when registration or license is refused, suspended or revoked.
See Sec. 14-289f re insurance requirements for operation of motorcycles.
See chapter 368d re emergency medical services.
See Sec. 20-427a re commissioner's duty to deny registration for commercial motor vehicle of contractor who is in
violation of provisions of Sec. 20-420 or 20-432.
See chapter 881b re infractions of the law.
Registration certificate is for the purpose of identification and revenue. 90 C. 414; 97 C. 145; 104 C. 168; 107 C. 141;
114 C. 264. Conditional vendee or chattel mortgagee may register a car as owner. 92 C. 254; 104 C. 169. Certificate is
prima facie evidence that the statutory requirements were fulfilled. 106 C. 257. Whether registration is invalidated by
failure of owner to register trade name, quaere. Id., 258. Purpose of direction to refuse registration to improperly equipped
vehicle is to assure protection to other users of highway. 114 C. 265. Mere operation of unregistered vehicle is not negligence
nor nuisance. Id., 266.
Cited. 30 CA 263.
1939 amendment unconstitutional. 7 CS 332. Legislature did not intend to make commissioner liable for failure to
comply with the regulations of this and similar statutes. 19 CS 171. Cited. 29 CS 155.
Cited. 4 Conn. Cir. Ct. 390. Cited. 5 Conn. Cir. Ct. 73.
Subsec. (a):
Does not govern registration of commercial vehicles. 177 C. 588.
Cited. 23 CA 50. Cited. 30 CA 742.
Cited. 37 CS 693.