What Can We Learn From Florida’s Registration Stickers?

It’s coming down the pipeline…. Maybe. The proposed bill eliminates the yellow registration stickers in favor of electronic verification of registration instead. We will still need to register our cars, but instead of getting the stickers in the mail, verification would be electronically (already in practice). The bill is estimated to save the state $24M and is hailed as a modernization effort to cut the yellow tape, reduce the burden on Floridians, and bring our registration system into the 21st century. To be continued as to whether it passes the House vote.

So, what can we learn from this technical vehicular amendment?

We can discuss cars during the probate process. Just about everyone passes away with a car (or two) in their name. The good news is that if that’s the only asset in the estate, we typically don’t need a probate. Cars, in Florida, are considered tangible assets and generally do not need to be probated. 

Because cars have a registration, sometimes we think they’re more difficult to dispose of than they are. However, all that needs to happen is that the “informant” on the death certificate takes the car title and the death certificate to a tag and title agency (the DMV is not recommended) and they will transfer the car to the informant. If there is a last will, the title agency will follow the last will section pertaining to tangible items or reference the memorandum of disposition (if a car is listed). Regardless of whether there’s a last will or memorandum of disposition filled out, we typically don’t need to take a car through the probate process. 

So, there you have it. We learn (again) that Florida is an awesome state to both live and die in and that cars are fairly easy to get rid of….if you know what you’re doing.