Congratulations on the purchase of your new mobile equipment! One of the first things you'll need to do is officially register the trailer and get your license plates.
What you'll need
- Manufacturer's Certificate of Origin (Sample) (you will need the original – a copy of this will not work)
- Invoice
- Buyer’s copy of the temporary tag
- Your state (like Texas) might require a safety inspection
If you picked up your machine in Houston, you should have received all this paperwork from us. If your machine was shipped, this paperwork will be placed inside front cover of the instruction manual, inside the toolbox.
What to do
The Manufacturer's Certificate of Origin (MCO) is like the title for the trailer. Take the original MCO and your invoice to the DMV for registration, and to obtain permanent license plates.
For customers who finance, the original MCO is sent directly to the lienholder / bank. Some banks use a Title Service to complete the registration for the customer, others do not. Contact your lender to find out about their specific procedure.
What about signing the back of the MCO?
Sometimes, the DMV will try to refuse registration, because they think the back side of the MCO must be signed.
Since we are the manufacturer of the unit, you are the first owner — therefore the front of the MCO is made out to you and signed. We are registered with the state of Texas as a manufacturer, and our GDN is located on the “buyer's copy of the temporary tag.” Most DMVs have never seen a factory direct sale, so understanding this can help you.
If the customer sells their unit, then they would sign the back transferring the ownership to the subsequent owner.