What Do I Need For My Trailer to Be Street Legal?

Here's a list of the things you need for your trailer to be road-ready.

1. Title or Certificate of Origin?

If you’re in Ohio, trailers need to have a title if they weigh 4,000 pounds or more. Less than that, they will have a certificate of origin.

Titles are issued by Clerk of Courts title offices. Click here to locate the offices for your county.

What’s a certificate of origin? It’s a legal document like a title, with the VIN, weight, GVWR, etc. Dealers (including us) provide a certificate of origin. No title fee is required. However if you get it at the BMV there may be a registration fee.

If you move to a different state you may be able to convert the certificate of origin to a title for that state.

2. License Plate

Whether or not the trailer is titled, you will need to get a license plate for it, and the license plate must be clearly visible on the back of the trailer.

3. Insurance 

It’s always a good idea to have some kind of insurance on your investment. Are you legally required to get insurance on it? For that you need to check with your vehicle’s insurer, because every insurance carrier is different. Some will say if it’s hooked up properly, there is no legal requirement. Some will say yes or no based on GVWR. Some will say yes across the board.

4. Anything else I should get?

We recommend getting a spare tire as well, which we also sell. It’s not legally required in Ohio, but it’s highly recommended to have. We really have a safety-first philosophy. It’s not a good idea to try to get away with the minimum safety-wise just to save a little money—you usually end up paying a lot more for that philosophy later on.

You will also want to have a lock for your trailer, to discourage theft. We carry a range of types. Again it’s not legally required, but you really should have it.

You are legally required to make sure your trailer’s lights work—we can help with the wiring if needed.

We also recommend purchasing lubricant for maintenance—yearly is often enough. You can do this in the spring right before you resume use. We also recommend getting your trailer undercoated for fall and winter. We can help with that as well.

Give us a call if you are unsure of anything, or you'd like assistance. We'll get you rolling.