Law and Government

by

New Toad Purchase Details

I took a cab from the bus depot to the dealership, arriving just past 4:00. It was just a bunch of cars on a dirt lot with a pimply teen selling the vehicles out of a tiny trailer. I’d done some research and knew the place wasn’t as shady as it looked.

The kid put a license plate on the truck, handed me keys, and left me to look at the truck. At first glance, it looked good, but there is a bit of rust, the windshield badly needs replacement, there’s corrosion on the battery, and it was due for an oil change. I got on all fours and confirmed that nothing was leaking and that the undercarriage was clean. The tires are almost new.

The bed was filthy and they didn’t have the keys for the canopy. The cab was sparkling, though, and there was a Mr. Lube sticker indicating that the truck was just due in terms of both mileage and date for an oil change. In the glove box, I found a few receipts showing that basic maintenance had been done on it. I also found the Alberta safety inspection report that said all was good, but the windshield needed replacing.

I cautiously maneuvered the truck out to the road and onto Yellowhead highway. It drove smoothly and the gears shifted easily. I took my hands off the steering wheel and the truck drove straight and true.

I decided I wanted to buy it, but not for a penny more than the 3K sticker price, including the warranty, taxes, and fees. In optimal condition, it’d be worth about 5K, plus all the fees. The warranty is North America wide for a year on all the major components like the engine and transmission.

The kid said the truck was not going for a penny less than the sticker price plus all the fees, for a total of about 3.8K. I tried to go below 3K knowing I wasn’t going to get it, but I wanted to test the waters. I told the kid that I had my suitcase to spend the night, couldn’t put more than 3K on my debit card, and if I had to leave to get more money, I might as well go look at the other trucks on my list. He called his boss and told me that for 3K, they weren’t giving me a warranty.

I refused to budge. 3K including taxes, fees, and the warranty.

He called his boss again and I overheard, “if she leaves, we’re losing the sale. Yes, she’s going to leave.”

The deal was done. Salesman and boss were not happy, but they knew a manual truck wasn’t going to move. We signed the paperwork, I paid, and the kid put my license plate on the truck. Done!

I drove to the registry, paid the $80 fee for the plate renewal, and then headed to a quick lube place for the oil change, fluid top up, battery testing, and tire pressure check.

Next, I got some picnic fixings, topped up the gas tank, and I was on the road to Stettler by 7:15.

The truck drove like a dream! It was so much quieter than the Accent and very powerful. I will have to get used to needing to shift gears at higher speeds. No regrets so far!

by

Getting Around Without a Car in Alberta Isn’t Easy!

After searching the car rentals, I decided that I was best off to take the bus to Edmonton. The Greyhound fare was $30, but the hotel here warned me that the only way to get there without walking in unsavoury neighbourhoods is by cab for about $40.

I decided to check out Via Rail and discovered Red Arrow, a charter bus service. It’ll wind up being pricier than doing the Greyhound plus taxi thing, but it sounds like a much nicer experience. I’ll take a taxi to their location and then again in Edmonton from the arrival point to the dealership. This trip is costing me an arm and a leg and I’m kicking myself for making reservations ahead of time. Live and learn.

My insurance company says that if my registration had still been valid on the car, I would have had two weeks to get everything transferred over. But since it’s not, I have till 6PM to make a deal on the car and get to the registry in Edmonton before it closes. If I succeed, and there’s no reason I can’t because I am ready to pay the full $3,0o0 for the truck (although I’m hoping they’ll settled for $2,000…), then I will be spending the night at Donna and Ken’s in Stettler, tomorrow at my property in Saskatchewan, and Wednesday I will be well on the road back to Quebec a full day earlier than my best case scenario.

Because I’ll be gaining a day, I am considering ordering my towing system parts for me to pick up somewhere along the way in the States, provided I can find a safe place to have them delivered. If I order tonight or first thing in the morning, and have them delivered in the vicinity of Duluth or even Minneapolis, there is a chance we’d arrive at the same time. Any suggestions? Would a post office hold big metal parts sent General Delivery?

by

Scary Mail

Jody emailed me tonight to let me know she got some mail for me from “Government of Alberta, Driver Fitness and Monitoring, Edmonton” and that it was probably my stickers for the license plate but did I want her to open up the envelope and check?

I quickly Googled Driver Fitness and Monitoring because it didn’t sound good and the results caused me to reply with, “Yes.”

It took about an hour for her to get back to me while I fretted. Did someone report me for dangerous driving? Was I ticketed for something and never informed? The best case scenario I could envision was that I needed to get my eyes tested since they didn’t do that when I got my license here (wearing glasses or contacts is a condition on my license). I kept telling myself, “Calm down. Whatever it is, you’ll deal with it. No sense working yourself up over nothing.” But you try to get a letter from a place called Driver Fitness and Monitoring without knowing the contents and not fret over it!

Jody’s next email had the subject line “Mail is OK” with a scan of the letter. I just laughed and laughed and laughed because the letter basically said what the lady from Service Alberta told me yesterday.

Here’s the letter:

The highlights:

-Your Accent has been reported unrepairable. It cannot be registered or put on the road. It can only be sold for scrap or dismantled for pairs.

-If you still have your registration and license plate, you can transfer them to a new vehicle.

-If you don’t have the registration and license plate, advise a registry office so that they can be cancelled.

I am once again thankful that Jody reminded me to go grab my license plate off the car. I am certain I would not have thought to do so myself. I am really fond of that license plate because it is just one number off from the motorhome so I only have to remember which is the 6 and which is the 7. It’s like having a matched set, which is what my rig might look like soon if the seller would only get back to me! 🙂

by

Scheduling the Evaluation For the Final Motorhome Repairs

I knew there was something else I had to do today besides, you know, earn a living: schedule a time for me to bring Miranda in for an evaluation of the repairs to be done. I wanted Aviva to advise me how to proceed before doing that.

This was the least frustrating part of my call with my adjuster this morning. She told me that they are not sending another evaluator out. I am to take the rig to get it evaluated. If the body shop guy has the same to-do list as the evaluator did in the US, then we’re good to go. They are not going to quibble over money.

I wanted to give myself plenty of time between the end of my Calgary trip and the evaluation, so I am going in first thing on June 15th. Closer to that date, I will call again and ask if I will be able to leave Miranda there until the repairs can be done. If so, I’ll have enough time to get my cats settled in my mother’s garage, my fridge and freezer emptied, and my office set up in the guest bedroom. Frankly, this would be easier than to pack up, go there, come back, unpack, repack, and go back again. Plus, there is a good chance that the repairs will coincide with the city redoing my mother’s entrance so I would have had to park Miranda on the street for several days anyway.

Now, I need to find a place to have the baseplate installed on the truck. Whew.

by

What Happens If You Total Your Vehicle Registered in Alberta?

My vehicle registrations are due tomorrow. I’ve paid for the motorhome, but wasn’t sure what to do about the car. The Service Alberta website was useless.

So I called and after spending ages on hold, I got a live person. She explained that my insurance company would have informed the Ministry of Transport that the vehicle is off the road, so I don’t have to do anything.

When I go register my truck next week, I can bring the car’s license plate and if it’s deemed to be reusable (I can’t imagine it not being reusable), it will be transferred to the truck. Easy peasy.

Unrelated, after this call, I had to call the lawyer in Saskatchewan who dealt with my property transfer because the cheque I sent for their services hadn’t cleared my account yet. The person who answered confirmed that the cheque was deposited yesterday and that my account is in good standing. I was then thanked profusely for not only paying on time, but making sure my payment was received. Methinks they have to chase their clients!

Okay, I’m ready to turn in my grown up card for today… but I’m waiting for a call from Ohio.