Some residents in St. Albert are frustrated with the Alberta government’s new policy to skip mailing out registration renewal reminders.
As of April 1, 2016 the government stopped mailing out notices to remind drivers to renew the registration on their vehicles and has switched over to email reminders.
Fortunately for Dale Krawchuk, he has registered for email reminders and has so far avoided a fine, but he is concerned that other drivers may not be so lucky.
“I think it’s really unfair that the police aren’t lenient with registrations,” Krawchuk said.
He thinks many people may not have access to email or will forget to sign up for email reminders, and will unknowingly be driving around with expired registration.
The government of Alberta is able to save $3 million a year by not mailing out registration reminders.
Krawchuk doesn’t disagree with the government trying to save money but wishes there would be more leniency with regard to ticketing and a reduced fine for expired registration.
St. Albert RCMP say it is their duty to enforce the laws.
"As the police service in St. Albert, it is our duty to preserve the peace, uphold the law and provide quality service in partnership with our communities,” said Const. Beth McIntosh of the St. Albert RCMP. “This includes enforcing the statutes and laws, such as the Traffic Safety Act.”
The police say that operating an unregistered vehicle and driving with an expired license plate can each carry a fine of $310 and the vehicle can be towed.
Krawchuk would have rather seen the government reduce the fine for a year or two while people adjusted to the new email reminder system.
“It is a fair comment to say in the past the government reminders made it less likely a vehicle owner would allow their registrations to lapse, however it is the responsibility of the registered owner to ensure they are aware of the date their registrations expire and to renew their registrations prior to that date,” McIntosh said in an email.
Police say that tickets and warnings have both increased since the new legislation took effect. During a six-month period between Oct 1, 2015 and March 31, 2016 police issued 213 tickets and 89 warnings under the two acts. The following six-month period saw an increase in tickets, with 484 violations and 313 warnings.
According to police, it is up to the individual officer to decide on whether to issue a ticket or a warning.
People over the age of 70 will continue to receive mailed reminders until April 1, 2017 and people with disabilities will continue to receive mailed reminders indefinitely.
The month when vehicle registration is up for renewal depends on last name. In October last names that begin with S, but not Sc or Sz, need to renew. In November, last names that begin with K or P, but not Ke or Po, need to renew.
For more details check http://www.alberta.ca/vehicle-registration-renewal.aspx
