As New York’s premier traffic ticket law firm, we see lots and lots of traffic tickets. One violation that recently has gained popularity is driving with a suspended registration (VTL 512). Even though this is a traffic ticket, it is also a crime (misdemeanor) and answerable in a criminal court. Therefore, it needs to be treated VERY seriously.
A person can be founded guilty of VTL 512 when he or she drives a vehicle knowing or should knowing that its registration is suspended. Most commonly, a registration is suspended when the owner fails to maintain continuous auto insurance coverage.
However, we expect to see many more suspended registration tickets being issued in the near future. In particular, I predict that cash-strapped municipalities will start working with DMV to have scofflaw motorists’ registrations suspended. While municipalities have other weapons to combat unpaid parking tickets (ex., interest charges, imposition of penalties and towing), suspending registrations will really clamp down on motorists. Without a current registration sticker, scofflaws who driving their cars will be easily picked off and charged with a VTL 512 charge.