It’s just another day at the dealership. The distinct aroma of coffee floats through the air and the staff glides in and around each other, going about their daily tasks like a well-oiled machine. However, when an out-of-state customer walks in, looking to buy a car, the tension noticeably rises as some staff members scramble to look up out-of-state rules and regulations. You know it’s gotten out of hand when an employee resorts to calling another state’s local motor vehicle office, only to be put on hold for hours.

Will there come a day when an out-of-state customer doesn’t send your dealership personnel into a mild panic? When titling and registering an out-of-state vehicle, three tools may alleviate some of the frustration pain on your employees’ faces.

What does an out-of-state title and registration tool mean for your dealership? It means more support and faster answers to the questions you may have on other states’ policies for your staff. For buyers, they can feel assured entering your dealership, buying a vehicle and driving it back to their home state while knowing you’ve already taken care of their registration and plates.

The first frustration: accurate fees. How does one learn about the vehicle registration fees of another state? Rather than calling an out-of-state DMV office or combing through websites claiming to have the answer, utilizing an on-demand fee calculator to give up-to-date estimates of out-of-states registration fees will significantly save you time. The buyer will feel more secure, knowing how much fees will be in their home state to make an informed decision on their purchase.

The second hurdle: title and registration forms. Different states have different looking forms; many states ask for varied types of information. Wouldn’t it be easier to access a fee calculator and pre-populated, ready-to-sign forms for the buyer’s destination state? Once signed, the customer can take the papers back to their home state and finish the process themselves — or you could take care of it for them. These tools allow you to close the deal faster, without fear of the customer walking away due to any delays on your end.

Rather than agonize over the minor details, you have probably looked into using a service that does it all. Sure, you need the fee estimates and the forms to complete the deal with your buyer, but afterward, why not just let a service handle the rest? This includes reviewing all of the paperwork, corresponding with local jurisdictions, sending plates, stickers and registration directly to the buyer or your dealership. Letting someone else handle it all — that sounds so much easier. In that case, your buyer is aware of the registration costs and knows it’s all taken care of. Your staff is free to concentrate on selling rather than falling down the endless rabbit hole of out-of-state title and registration compliance.

You may already utilize such a service. If so, how well integrated is it into your dealership’s workflows? When you have a question, can you track someone down to ask questions, on the phone or chat? No one, especially not us, expects a dealership to handle all of this out-of-state title and registration business by themselves.

Whether you take advantage of fee estimates, forms or a full-featured service, any of these tools will lighten the load on your dealership and its staff considerably. Rather than fretting over out-of-state procedures, you can focus on what you do best and return your title and registration workflow performance to that of a well-oiled machine.

As CNCDA members, you are well aware of the association’s relationship with Vitu and our DMVdesk solution for electronic title and registration in California. Even late last year, you most likely took advantage of the out-of-state title and registration services, available at no charge. Those easy-to-use tools mentioned above are available with Vitu Interstate. Ask us or DMVdesk Support about Vitu Interstate. The best part: Interstate is built into DMVdesk and available at a moment’s notice.