Ontario auto dealerships will soon be able to register vehicles, plates online

It's been two years since visibility concerns were raised about the Ford government's blue licence plates. Officials eventually scrapped the rollout, but what's being done to replace the issued plates? Nick Westoll reports.

The provincial government has announced a new initiative that will eventually see more than 7,000 automobile dealerships be able to register vehicles with ServiceOntario digitally.

Officials said on Tuesday the digital dealership registration (DDR) program, which is being tested in select dealerships for new vehicle purchases, will cut the time it takes to get a vehicle off the dealership lot because staff won’t have to go in-person to Ontario government offices.

They said registered dealerships will be able to directly register online and put licence plates kept at the business on vehicles.

Advertisement

RELATED: Renewal fees for Ontario licence plate stickers end March 12


It’s estimated there are up to 4.8 million dealership transactions (including registration of used vehicles, vehicle transfers, vehicle permit replacements) each year.

The statement said dealerships that participate will need to comply with privacy- and data-related procedures in order to be part of the prgoram.

“In addition to making vehicle registrations faster and more efficient, DDR will also facilitate more accurate and error-free registrations while protecting the security and privacy of Ontarians’ data,” officials said in a statement.

The move has been part of a broader push to move popular services and requests at ServiceOntario locations online.