Late in July 2020 I plant a small roof rack trailer for auction in a neighboring boondocks. It came with a canoe and the price was reasonable. I had been eyeing a trailer purchase for some fourth dimension because, well, let's not go into this at present. The reasoning is multi-faceted and warrants a separate postal service.

And then, I contacted the seller and we met then 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 information technology. I chop-chop wrote up a Neb of Sale, and I towed it home.

Up to this point, I hadn't really thought much about what it would accept to annals a trailer, other than that I wanted to do information technology. And so the research started.

Registration Requirements

The RMV website does not really spell out the registration requirements for trailers purchased from an private – they are the same as for other vehicles:

  • A completed Registration and Title Application
  • The previous owner'due south certificate of titleor the previous owner'south registration and pecker 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 championship (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. In that location is also this checklist on the RMV site. It mentions proof of insurance. I did just a superficial search on insurance requirements for trailers, something that would come back and seize with teeth me later.

The start hitting 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 demand an insurance stamp on the application form. I had the residual – a pecker of auction AND the certificate of origin signed over to me.

So I went to the website and began the process of getting an date at i 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 60 minutes away, so I decided I would have the Harley and pick the 1 with the most breathtaking ride – Plymouth, MA.

First RMV Visit

The primeval appointment that I found came with a 2 week expect fourth dimension. I booked it. During those initial 2 weeks, I made several trips with the trailer and 2 canoes, a couple around town to the Charles River, 1 to Lake Cochituate in Framingham on a busy summertime weekend. I made sure I had the paperwork with me. Luckily, I did not get pulled over, then I tin can't tell you what would have happened.

Cerberus, the mythical hound of Hades, garding the gates to the Underworld

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 edifice, but I wasn't in a hurry, and so I waited the 45 minutes or so until I was finally called inside. Cerberus awaited me in the antechamber and demanded to review my paperwork. After a cursory glance, he pointed at my Document of Origin and said: "We don't have copies". I tried to explicate that this was all the previous possessor had given me, and that the trailer had previously been registered in Massachusetts, merely he wanted no part of this. He would not allow me in. I had to ride dorsum with cipher achieved, having wasted half a twenty-four hours in the process.

Regrouping

The things I looked into to resolve this were

  • reaching out to the seller over again and ask him to double-check for the original championship (negative) or his registration (also negative – already discarded)
  • researching the domicile-congenital path for trailers (seemed sketchy – I had ordered a listing of accompaniment parts from the manufacturer already that cost more than than what I had paid for the trailer, but would this be sufficient prove?)
  • researching out-of-land registrations

The all-time option seemed to be to ask a friend in New Hampshire to annals information technology temporarily and and so sell it back to me. With the NH registration, so said many forum posts, I would be able to register it in MA.

Duplicate Document of Origin

But simply when I was almost to accomplish 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 ship a duplicate certificate? I chosen, and – bingo. They took my information and promised to send a duplicate Document of Origin. Meanwhile, I scheduled several new appointments at the RMVs in Worcester and Fall River (but in case, using different electronic mail addresses and phone numbers).

A week passed and the envelope did non make it. Information technology seemed that they had forgotten to mail information technology. I cancelled my appointments and called again. This time, advice worked meliorate, and the letter with the new certificate arrived within a week.

2nd RMV Visit

Once I had the document, I contacted the seller then that he could sign it over to me again. Unfortunately he was out of state and nosotros could not see until Friday that week. It was already late in August by now. I scheduled more RMV appointments, merely I had found out that the RMV in Milford, MA offered driblet-off service for application packages and would plough them effectually in a few days, much shorter than the wait for an in-person appointment at another location. One time I had the signature that Friday, it was 3:xxx pm. I checked the hours of the service center on their website – 9 to five pm – and was on my way with the Harley to the RMV office. I arrived there at 4:15 pm, merely before I could get in line, I was told that drib-off packages were but accustomed until iv pm. And then I rode home again, having achieved nothing – a familiar feeling by now.

Third RMV Visit

Undeterred, I returned first thing the post-obit Monday morning, right when they opened. I already had the instruction sheet and the bar code that I needed to scan with my telephone from the Friday visit, and within x minutes I was inside.

One time again, someone reviewed my application documents, and once once again they were rejected. I learned that I needed an insurance stamp after all, even though insurance was not required.

And so I hopped on the bike and went to the AAA office one town over that would stamp my grade. On the way there I was nearly killed, but I fabricated it to the AAA. They were open up for business organization without an date and willing to provide the required stamp. I learned that, even though a policy it non required and at that place is no cost, a trailer rider needs to exist 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, simply dismissed the thought every bit something that could cause embarrassment if the wait was short and I wasn't there nonetheless. Error. When I arrived, there were 20 people ahead of me.

And on the manner I lost the AM/FM of my Harley! I thought I would just gild a replacement and not worry almost it. This was another mistake – I had not just lost the antenna, only also the stud, and replacing it turned out to exist a costly and complicated projection. Once I realized this, I even returned that same evening and rode the stretch of Interstate 3 times, simply I was not able to find it once more.

Anyhow, the await ended upwards being less than an 60 minutes and I was finally able to driblet off my application parcel late that Monday forenoon.

5th RMV Visit

Wednesday afternoon I received a phone call that my awarding was processed and that, after payment, I could pick up my plate and registration. This was a iv:15pm. Knowing that it would take me xxx minutes to go there, I chop-chop sent payment and got in the car (it was raining, so no riding that day).

The much coveted registration and (temporary) license plate
The much coveted registration and (temporary) license plate

I arrived at four:55 and stormed inside, mask on. My envelope was prepare and I received

  • one temporary plate (they were out of metal license plates)
  • 1 temporary registration (to become 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 bankrupt out into a hysterical laughter. So much gas wasted.

Conclusion

The permanent plate will arrive in the postal service, I was told, and then I won't take to go dorsum once more for this.

The accept-away for others and myself for time to come trailer purchases and the Massachusetts trailer registration procedure:

  • If the trailer was registered in Massachusetts before, yous DO Non NEED A CERTIFICATE of ORIGIN!
  • Do not carp bringing a copy that the previous owner may have had – it volition misfile the heck out of RMV guard dogs
  • If your trailer was Non previously registered in MA, y'all will need the original or a duplicate Document of Origin, or the previous registration. Make sure you have one or the other!