An insurer has a legal obligation to cancel a vehicle’s registration when:
This is to minimise the risk of unsafe vehicles getting back on the road.
The insurer should complete the cancellation transaction. If they tell us that the vehicle was written off because of fire, water or structural damage, we'll add a safety flag to the vehicle's record on the Motor Vehicle Register. The vehicle will then be recorded on our damaged vehicles list.
If you still get licence (rego) reminder notices after you believe the insurer has cancelled the vehicle, give them a call to confirm they've completed the paperwork – if the vehicle has been cancelled you shouldn’t be receiving these notices.
A refund of any unused vehicle licence or road user charges will be sent to the registered person.
When an insurer cancels a vehicle’s registration they are deemed by law to be the registered person at the time of cancellation. This means the refund of the unused portion of the vehicle licence or road user charges is refunded to the insurer.
If there are outstanding licence fees owing on the vehicle, an invoice will be sent to the person registered in respect of the vehicle at the time the fees were due.
This will usually be from the licence expiry date up until the date the insurer becomes the registered person, so the invoice will not go to the insurer.
Repairs to cancelled vehicles need to be inspected, repaired and certified by an NZTA-approved repair certifier before the vehicle can be reregistered for road use.
Find out more about reregistering a vehicle
Find a repair certifier
Most vehicles are required to be licensed continuously. We recommend that you apply for an exemption from vehicle licensing if your insurer hasn’t settled your claim but your vehicle licence is about to expire.
This may mean that you are not liable to pay any licence fees while the vehicle is off the road and your claim is being processed by your insurer.
Make sure that you apply for an exemption on or before the due date of the licence so that your exemption starts from the earliest possible date.
A temporary exemption must be for a minimum period of three months.
If your claim is settled and the vehicle is repaired, and you want to renew the licence within three months of applying for the exemption, the fees will backdate to the expiry date of your last licence.
If it takes longer than three months then you will not be liable to pay any licence fees while the vehicle is exempt.
The easiest way to get an exemption is to apply online.
Apply for an exemption for your vehicle
Otherwise, you can apply for an exemption at an agent.
If you don’t want to apply for an exemption, you will need to pay the vehicle licence fees as normal.
