Wheel ScoutWhat a California plate lookup shows
A license plate points to one car. We turn the California plate into the car's 17-character VIN, show you the year, make and model, then read its history: salvage, flood and rebuilt brands, title history by state, odometer readings and theft records. You also see the factory specs and the safety recalls for that model year before you pay. What it never shows is the owner: the federal Driver's Privacy Protection Act keeps names and addresses in DMV records private, and we don't sell them.
What a California plate looks like
California issues two plates for most passenger cars, and Vehicle Code 5200 says that when two are issued, one goes on the front and one on the rear. A car missing its front plate is not following the rule, though it says nothing about the car's history. Type the plate without spaces; we find the car.
The thing out-of-state buyers miss: standard California plates stay with the car. The DMV says license plates generally remain with the vehicle they were issued to, so the plate you look up today is usually the one that stays on after you buy. The exceptions are personalized, special interest and disabled person plates, which belong to the plate owner. The seller takes those off, or signs them over to you on form REG 17. If plates are missing, the buyer orders replacements on form REG 156 for $28.
Dealer temporary plates. Under Assembly Bill 516, a car sold by a licensed California dealer without permanent plates leaves the lot with paper temporary license plates printed on special paper from an authorized DMV system, mounted front and rear where the metal plates go, never taped in a window. A buyer who refuses the front one signs a waiver. In a sale between two people the seller's standard plates normally stay on the car, so there is nothing temporary to mount.
California title brands: what the lookup can show
California brands the record when an owner or insurer reports a car as a total loss, and again when it comes back. Our $5 report reads the NMVTIS record, which carries the brands from California and every other state the car has been titled in.
| Salvage certificate | Issued when a car is reported to the DMV as a total loss. The certificate costs $28. It has to be reregistered through the steps below before it goes back on the road. |
|---|---|
| Revived salvage | A total-loss car restored to operating condition and reregistered. The owner files form REG 343 with the salvage certificate, a Verification of Vehicle (REG 31) or a California Highway Patrol Certificate of Inspection (CHP 97C), the bills of sale for parts and the repair receipts, a smog certification where required, and a $50 nonrefundable salvage inspection fee. Airbags must be present and working. From then on the car is registered as a revived salvage vehicle. |
| Vehicle Safety Systems Inspection | The Bureau of Automotive Repair inspection every revived salvage car now needs before it can be registered. It replaced the old brake and lamp certificates and checks the body structure, brakes and lights, passenger compartment, steering and suspension, and tires and wheels, plus an on-board diagnostics scan, an open-recall check and a road test. The station sends the certificate to the DMV electronically. |
| Nonrepairable | A car fit only for parts or scrap. The nonrepairable vehicle certificate is also $28. |
| Junk | A separate DMV classification with its own revival process. The report will show it if it is on the record. |
| Out-of-state brands | California does not recognize another state's salvage inspection certificate. A salvage car brought in from elsewhere goes through the full California process. |
Wildfire totals. The 2025 Palisades and Eaton fires produced 7,133 commercial and personal auto physical damage claims, with $193.6 million paid as of July 2026, according to the California Department of Insurance. Fire-damaged cars that were totaled get salvage records like any other loss. A car from the Los Angeles area with a fresh title, smoke smell or new interior trim deserves the check.
What a California title transfer costs
All transfer fees are the buyer's responsibility, paid to the DMV. Amounts are from the DMV's registration fee page and the California Department of Tax and Fee Administration (CDTFA); the DMV's fee calculator gives the exact total for a VIN.
| Transfer fee | $15. If the car was sold more than once before anyone told the DMV, each sale owes its own transfer fee. |
|---|---|
| Use tax | Yes, on a car bought from an individual. The rate equals the sales tax rate at the address where you register the car: the statewide base is 7.25 percent, and local district taxes push it higher in most areas. You pay it to the DMV with the transfer. |
| Family and gifts | No use tax on a car from a parent, grandparent, child, grandchild, spouse or registered domestic partner, or a brother or sister if both were minors at the time, as long as they are not in the car business. Stepparents and stepchildren do not count without an adoption, and neither do ex-spouses after the divorce. A true gift, with nothing paid or traded, owes no use tax. File a Statement of Facts (REG 256); the DMV may ask for a CDTFA use tax clearance. |
| Registration (if due) | $76 registration fee, $34 California Highway Patrol fee, a vehicle license fee of 0.65 percent of the price or value, and a transportation improvement fee from $33 (under $5,000 in value) to $231 ($60,000 and up). |
| Smog transfer fee | $8, paid by the buyer of a gas car four model years old or newer instead of a smog check. |
| Late transfer | Transfer fees are due within 10 days of the sale. If the DMV has not received them within 30 days, penalties apply (the DMV fee page lists a $15 transfer penalty), and late use tax carries its own penalty and interest from CDTFA. |
| Replacement title | $28 on form REG 227 if the seller lost the title. |
California forms and deadlines
| Buyer's deadline | 10 days from the purchase to transfer ownership into your name and pay the fees. |
|---|---|
| The title | The pink slip, signed by the seller on line 1. If it is lost, the seller completes REG 227; if there is a lender, the lender's release on that form must be notarized. |
| REG 262 | Vehicle/Vessel Transfer and Reassignment. Each seller fills one out when the car was sold more than once on the same title, and it carries the odometer disclosure when a REG 227 replaces a lost title. It is not posted online; call the DMV's automated line at 1-800-777-0133 to have one mailed. |
| Odometer | Required on most transfers. The exceptions are commercial vehicles over 16,000 pounds and cars past the federal age limit, which is 20 years for model year 2011 and newer. |
| Smog certification | The seller provides it for a gas car more than four model years old, unless a biennial smog check was done within the last 90 days. |
| Seller's Notice of Transfer and Release of Liability | Form REG 138, filed by the seller within 5 days. It ends the seller's liability for tickets and crimes after the sale date, but the seller stays on the DMV record until you finish the transfer. |
| Bill of sale (REG 135) | One of the DMV's transfer forms. It helps show the chain of ownership when no odometer disclosure is needed; otherwise the REG 262 does that job. |
| Statement of Facts (REG 256) | For family transfers, gifts and inheritances, to claim the smog and use tax exemptions. |
| Your new title | Usually arrives by mail in 15 to 30 days. |
Inspections in California
The DMV's ownership-change checklist has no safety inspection on it. California's routine test is the Smog Check, run by the Bureau of Automotive Repair, and the sale is where it bites.
- Gas, hybrid and alternative-fuel cars four model years old or newer: no smog check at the sale. The buyer pays the $8 smog transfer fee.
- Older than four model years: the seller must give the buyer a valid smog certificate. A biennial check done in the last 90 days counts.
- Exempt completely: gas cars of model year 1975 and older, diesels of 1997 and older, diesels over 14,000 pounds, electric vehicles and motorcycles.
- Family transfers between a parent, grandparent, child, grandchild, brother, sister, spouse or domestic partner are exempt from the smog check at the transfer. A smog check may still be due if the registration renewal is.
- Renewal: cars eight model years old or newer skip the biennial check and pay a $20 smog abatement fee instead.
A seller who says "you can get the smog done" is shifting a cost and a risk to you that the law puts on them. A car that fails may need repairs before it can ever be registered in your name.
The only safety inspection in the system is the Vehicle Safety Systems Inspection for revived salvage and junk cars. For anything else, run the plate here for the title and odometer history and pay a shop you choose to look underneath.
Before you meet a California seller
- Run the plate or the VIN here first, before the deposit. Match the year, make, model and trim to the car in front of you.
- Match the VIN on the dashboard, the driver door sticker and the pink slip.
- Match the name on the title to the seller's ID. If they are not the titled owner, each seller in between owes you a signed REG 262.
- Get the smog certificate from the seller if the car is more than four model years old, dated within 90 days.
- Check the plates. Standard plates stay on the car. A personalized plate comes off unless the seller signs a REG 17.
- Ask about the registration. If it is expired or coming due, the renewal fees are due when you transfer the car.
- Look for fire and flood signs on any car from a burn area: new carpet, new headliner, smoke smell, melted trim.
- Budget the use tax at your own local rate, and file within 10 days.
Where these California facts come from
Read on the state's own pages on October 31, 2026. Fees and rules change; the county tax office has the final word on the day you file.
- California DMV: title transfers and changes
- California DMV: how to change vehicle ownership (HTVR 32)
- California DMV: registration fees
- California DMV: how to reregister a salvage (total loss) vehicle (HTVR 13)
- California DMV: temporary license plates dealer FAQ (AB 516)
- California Vehicle Code 5200: plate display
- CDTFA: use tax on vehicles
- CDTFA: California city and county sales and use tax rates
- Bureau of Automotive Repair: Smog Check
- Bureau of Automotive Repair: safety systems inspections for revived salvage vehicles
- California Department of Insurance: Palisades and Eaton fire claims as of July 2026
Look up a plate from another state
The reports
Works for California plates and every other state. You see the car before you pay.
Basic history report
By VIN or license plate · official NMVTIS record · shows right away
- Salvage, junk, flood and rebuilt title brands
- Title history by state, with dates
- Odometer readings and rollback flags
- Total-loss records from insurers
- Theft check
- Market value for the car
Full vehicle history report
By VIN or license plate · Not instant: emailed or texted to you within two hours
- Every owner, how they used it (personal, lease, rental or fleet) and where
- Accidents and damage reports
- Title brands: salvage, junk, rebuilt, flood, fire, hail, lemon
- Odometer readings over time, checked for rollbacks
- Service and maintenance history
- Open recalls and common owner complaints for the model
California license plate lookup questions
How do I look up a California license plate?
Type the plate above with California selected. We turn it into the car's VIN and show the year, make and model at no charge, then the $5 report shows its title brands, odometer readings, total-loss records and theft check from the NMVTIS record.
How much does it cost to transfer a car title in California?
The transfer fee is $15, plus use tax at the sales tax rate where you register the car (7.25 percent base, higher in most areas), plus the $8 smog transfer fee on a car four model years old or newer, and any registration fees that are due. Pay within 10 days; penalties apply if the DMV has not received the fees within 30.
Do I pay sales tax on a car I buy from an individual in California?
Yes, as use tax, at the rate for your registration address, paid to the DMV with the transfer. Cars bought from a parent, grandparent, child, grandchild, spouse or registered domestic partner, and true gifts, are exempt with a Statement of Facts.
Who pays for the smog check when a car is sold in California?
The seller. For a gas car more than four model years old the seller must hand the buyer a valid smog certificate, unless one was done in the last 90 days. Cars four model years old or newer skip it, and the buyer pays an $8 smog transfer fee.
Can a salvage car be registered in California?
Yes, as a revived salvage vehicle, after it passes the Bureau of Automotive Repair's Vehicle Safety Systems Inspection and a DMV or CHP identity inspection, with parts receipts, working airbags, a smog certificate and a $50 inspection fee. It is then registered as a revived salvage vehicle.
Do California plates stay with the car?
Standard plates do. The DMV says plates generally remain with the vehicle they were issued to. Personalized and special interest plates belong to the owner, who removes them or releases them to the buyer on form REG 17.
Can I find the owner of a California plate?
No. The federal Driver's Privacy Protection Act keeps owners' names and addresses in DMV records private, and no legitimate plate lookup shows them. You see the car, not the person.
Who runs vehicle titles in California?
The California Department of Motor Vehicles (DMV) issues titles, plates and registration. The California Department of Tax and Fee Administration sets the use tax, the Bureau of Automotive Repair runs the Smog Check and safety systems inspections, and the California Highway Patrol inspects some salvage cars.
More ways to check a car
Find the deal, then check it.
Wheel Scout alerts you the moment an underpriced car posts on Marketplace, OfferUp or Craigslist near you, and runs the history right in the app.
The basic history report uses NMVTIS data from an approved NMVTIS data provider. NMVTIS records come from states, insurers and salvage yards; not every event is reported to it. Vehicle specs and recalls come from the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA). Wheel Scout is not affiliated with any marketplace or government agency. Wheel Scout is not affiliated with the California Department of Motor Vehicles (DMV).