Online license renewal a popular choice with Missourians

Missourians may renew their vehicle tags online, at least some vehicle types in some counties, and the service is growing in availability and popularity. Still, there are many people who don't have that option. Eligible vehicles include ATVs, automobiles, trailers and trucks under 8,500 gross vehicle weight. Vernon County Treasurer Phil Couch said Vernon County has been transmitting the data to the Missouri Department of Revenue for almost two years.

"I've actually been doing that (sending the data to the Revenue Department) for close to two years," Couch said. "We send it up by diskette, we have to send them three years of information each time we send it. For example this year we send them '07, '08 and '09 -- they want three years of records."

Couch said the records aren't updated daily, it takes some time to process the information.

"We send it quarterly. Well, for the end of the year we send it a little more often; we'll send it monthly at the end of January, February and March because a lot of times people are in a hurry to get things done quickly at that time of year. If people are in a hurry we suggest they go to the local license office or that they pay it in November instead of December so the information will be in the system."

When putting in the information about county tax payments, Couch said it is very important that customers make sure to input the information exactly the way it appears on the tax notice.

"It has to be exactly as it is on your tax receipt," Couch said. "We have people call us all the time and they question, they say 'Well, I tried and couldn't get it to work.' You have to put in your last name, you have to put in that comma, you have to put in that space, your first name and it has to be spelled the same. If it's misspelled on our system and you put in your correct spelling, it's not going to work. It has to be exactly as it is on the tax receipt. We get several calls about that because they forget to put the comma or they forget to put a space, sometimes they don't put in their last names first. It has to be specifically like we have it."

The new renewal forms that are sent out have a space for a PIN number, if that is blank, the renewal cannot be processed online. Some counties are not on the system and therefore the renewal form will lack the PIN. Even if the PIN is there it isn't a guarantee that the customer can renew online. Some insurance companies don't transmit the information about insurance coverage to the department and the system can't validate whether a person who is renewing is covered by insurance, a requirement to license a vehicle in Missouri.

The Web site for the system, www.plates.mo.gov, lists other reasons Missourians may not be able to register online: If the vehicle is leased; if the resident has a disabled plate and the renewal notice requires a physician's statement; The county in which the customer resides has not electronically submitted personal property tax records to the department; the vehicle is registered to a non-profit organization and is not assessed personal property tax by the county; it is covered by a commercial motor vehicle insurance policy or are self-insured; the customer lives in an area that requires an emissions inspection and the vehicle is a truck with a GVWR of 8,500 pounds or more; or if personal property tax verification is in the form of a personal property tax waiver.