DENVER — Drivers with expired registrations or temporary tags could face increased scrutiny this week as Denver-area law enforcement agencies launch a six-day enforcement effort targeting vehicles with overdue paperwork.
It’s a complaint the Denver Police Department gets all the time: expired vehicle registrations and temporary license plates.
“We understand the frustration that people are paying for their vehicle to be registered, and get frustrated when they see others aren't doing the same thing,” Denver Police Department spokesperson Doug Schepman said.
Starting Sunday, Denver Police, along with other law enforcement agencies, including the Aurora Police Department and Colorado State Patrol, will increase enforcement of expired registrations and temporary plates through Saturday.
DPD said this is their sixth targeted enforcement period since adopting their low-level stop policy in 2024, which limited traffic stops for low-level violations.
“A low-level offense, such as a recently expired registration or an equipment violation, officers would not make a stop for that. So, the policy allows for the Denver Police Department to do these enforcement periods to address this issue because we recognize that it's a frustrating issue for people in our community,” Schepman said.
Denver Police Department spokesperson Doug Schepman said more serious violations will still take precedence over expired registrations this week.
“If our officers observe expired registration during this enforcement period, they're going to take enforcement action, but it's not the only thing we're going to be focusing on. We're still going to be focusing on those more serious crash-causing violations as well as any criminal activity,” Schepman said.
During the five previous periods, officers issued nearly 2,600 citations for expired registration. DPD said those enforcement efforts have led to more people updating their registrations.
“Registrations have increased when we've done these enforcement periods. We want compliance, but we want people to know that if they're driving in the Denver area and an officer observes your registration is expired, you’re probably going to get pulled over and probably going to get a citation,” Schepman added.
An expired registration is a $95 fine, so if you have an expired registration or temporary plate, police encourage you to get your paperwork in order before you risk a traffic stop or citation.
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