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Can I be fined for driving a day after my rego expires?

The one bill you really need to pay on time.

By Jeremy Rochow
Published: Wednesday, May 6, 2020

Water, electricity, gas, internet, car registration – the list of bills we have to pay seems endless. It’s no wonder they occasionally slip our minds.

It happens to the best of us, and usually we remember to pay after a couple of days – no big deal. But for vehicle registration, it’s a different story.

If you don’t pay on time you could be driving an unregistered, and potentially uninsured, vehicle on the road.

“It doesn’t matter whether your rego has been expired for a day or 2 weeks, you can still be charged for the offence,” RAA’s Road Rules Consultant Stuart Churchill says.

“If you’re caught on the road, driving an unregistered vehicle, you can actually be fined for a couple of offences.”

In fact, your hip pocket could be a whopping $1292 lighter for the offence.

A costly mistake

How? Firstly, if your rego has recently run out, you could be charged with driving an unregistered vehicle and fined $411 plus a $60 Victims of Crime Levy.

If you’ve let it go for more than 30 days, you’ll no longer be covered by compulsory third party insurance.

This means you could be up for a further $761 and another $60 Victims of Crime Levy.

Rego fines

The fine for driving without registration and CTP insurance.

And just because you haven’t been pulled over doesn’t mean you’ve evaded the consequences. All road traffic cameras can detect unregistered and uninsured vehicles in South Australia.

Last year, 6885 motorists were fined for driving an unregistered vehicle on the road.

If you crash an unregistered and uninsured vehicle, then the consequences can be far more severe.

When a driver crashes their vehicle and isn’t covered by compulsory third party insurance, they’re liable for the cost of personal injury to anybody involved.

Red light camera on main road.
Red light and speed cameras can detect expired rego. Image: RAA

How can I make sure I don’t forget to pay?

To avoid this situation, opt-in for text and email reminders letting you know when your rego is due.

All you need to do is create a mySA Gov account and you’ll automatically get digital reminders rather than letters in the mail.

You’ll receive a reminder via email or SMS, 6 weeks before your rego is due. If you haven’t paid your rego a week before it expires, you’ll get a follow-up message.

A day after your rego expires, you’ll receive another digital notification.

If I let my registration expire, can I park my vehicle on the road?

No, you can’t. It doesn’t matter if it’s a car, motorcycle or trailer, it needs to be registered if it’s on the road.

The same fine you receive for driving when your rego has expired applies if you leave your vehicle parked on the road unregistered.

Have a road rule question?

Contact an RAA road rules expert.

Ask us

or call 8202 4570

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