Vehicle registration in South Carolina

[brirgriber]

I recently purchased a model s and took delivery in late November. I had read around here that Tesla will send the Certificate of Origin and form 400 for SC residents to take to the DMV. I received mail today from Tesla registrations, but it only had a cover letter with instructions to get a title and a copy of the receipt for MCO Title that Tesla acquired. It seems like this process changed somewhat recently.

I checked with my county tax auditor and they insist that they will need a Certificate of Origin from Tesla in order to get a tax bill that I can take to the DMV. Does Tesla send the Certificate of Origin at a later date, and has anyone gone through this new process in SC and can give me some advice?

Thanks for any help!

 

[DerbyDave]

Unless you leased the vehicle, the Title should not be acquired by Tesla, but by you. I don't live in SC, but Telsa sent me the MCO and receipts necessary to register my car in Kentucky within 3 weeks of buying it in another state to be registered in my state. Could your purchasing "dealer" be titling and registering it on your behalf? Did you buy it in SC?

 

[brirgriber]

Dealer is in NC. If I understand correctly, they can't really handle the titling of the vehicle like in some states, they can just provide me with the MCO and I need to get the vehicle titled since I'm out of state.

I think I meant to say that I only received a receipt instead of the actual MCO, and I'm just wondering if I should be waiting for that or bugging someone to try and get it. As of now, I can't show anything that will let me get the taxes paid to get the title myself.

 

[DerbyDave]

Dealer is in NC. If I understand correctly, they can't really handle the titling of the vehicle like in some states, they can just provide me with the MCO and I need to get the vehicle titled since I'm out of state.

I think I meant to say that I only received a receipt instead of the actual MCO, and I'm just wondering if I should be waiting for that or bugging someone to try and get it. As of now, I can't show anything that will let me get the taxes paid to get the title myself.

If the receipt and stuff you got is from Tesla in CA (or maybe from TX now), something is messed up. You mentioned Tesla got a Title, so if this is true, it appears they think you have leased the car, so the car is titled to Tesla. If you didn't lease it, better start checking on things.

 

[Beandoc]

Agree with this.

 

[theothertom]

I checked with my county tax auditor and they insist that they will need a Certificate of Origin from Tesla in order to get a tax bill that I can take to the DMV.

I'm assuming you purchased the car as opposed to leasing.
This is how I did it in July 2023. Tesla mailed the certificate of origin about 3-4 weeks after I picked up the car. Maybe Tesla has changed their procedures since then.
You need to take your bill of sale (available in your Tesla account) to the tax office and pay the tax. Then take the receipt from paying the taxes to the DMV, along with the certificate of origin, to register the car. You don't pay taxes at the DMV, you pay them at the county tax office.
If you transferred tags from another car, then no tax is due now, so all you have to do is take your certificate of origin to the DMV to register your new car.

 

[brirgriber]

Going to close the loop on this since it's all resolved now in case anyone in SC is confused about the process.

What Tesla is doing for SC buyers is going ahead and filing the MCO / Bill of Sale with the DMV in advance and completing the registration paperwork for you in advance.

Either the person I spoke to at the tax office didn't understand what I was asking or I was asking a dumb question (probably the latter), but I sent the MCO filing receipt I got from Tesla along with my license image in an email to the tax auditor and they generated a tax bill pretty quickly. Got that paid, went to the DMV the next day with everything the Tesla cover letter said I should take and got the plates. It was a much easier process than I expected it to be.

 

[Beandoc]

Thanks for the update. While this wasn't an issue for me, I think this kind of thing will potentially help a bunch of people down the line.

 

[DerbyDave]

Many states, including mine, cover "safety equipment" under comprehensive without your normal deductible, including lights, fog lights, and glass damged from comprehensive loss. I have even had a fog light replaced