Australians can’t rely on US laws to avoid vehicle registration
James McManagan
September 24, 2024
WHAT WAS CLAIMED
Australians can use certain US laws to avoid registering a vehicle.
OUR VERDICT
False. The US laws have no function in Australia.
AAP FACTCHECK – A video demonstrates how Australians can use a set of US commercial laws to avoid registering their cars, social media users claim.
This is false. Experts say that US laws have no effect in Australia, and the driver in the video did not ultimately avoid registering his car.
The claim appears in a video post on TikTok showing a man in a car being asked by two Queensland police officers why he’s driving an unregistered vehicle during a traffic stop.
The post caption claims the man used “UCC law to outmaneuver [sic] the police”.
After being told his vehicle needed to be registered, the man claimed: “UCC law 1-308 states clearly that you don’t have to contract with Queensland Transport if you don’t wish.”
The video ended with a quick cut showing a police officer telling the man: “You’re right to go.”
The same footage was shared on Facebook with the caption: “No mercy, no deals.”
UCC refers to the Uniform Commercial Code, a set of laws adopted by states that govern commercial transactions across the US.
Harry Hobbs, an associate professor and constitutional law expert at Sydney’s University of Technology, said UCC did not apply in Australia because it was a set of American laws.
He said UCC laws were a standardised legal framework for commercial contracts in the US, which anti-government movements such as sovereign citizens commonly misunderstood.
“They believe that the UCC is some form of higher law and thereby is superior to all other laws,” Dr Hobbs told AAP FactCheck.
“They argue that if they haven’t agreed to be bound by a law passed by the Queensland Parliament, they don’t need to abide by that law.”
He said the UCC 1-308 provision referenced in the video had been misinterpreted and “doesn’t work in the manner that sovereign citizens believe”.
“It deals with situations where, for example, one party doesn’t perform their obligations under a contract, but the other party wants to keep the relationship,” Dr Hobbs said.
“The other party might accept the breach for the moment but still reserve the right to sue later.”
Graeme Orr, a University of Queensland public law expert, said the man in the video mistakenly believed car registration was a voluntary commercial contract under common law, but it’s a legal requirement under statutory law.
“Paying rego isn’t some commercial agreement you opt into, like buying a beer, it’s statute law, to achieve social benefits,” he told AAP FactCheck.
He said mandatory registration funded road infrastructure, ensured safety through roadworthy certificates and enabled vehicles to be traced when drivers broke road rules or caused injuries.
Vehicles must be registered annually under Queensland regulations.
Prof Orr said some people, such as those in the sovereign citizens movement, believed they were not subject to any law unless they agreed.
“To bolster this libertarian fantasy that they can disagree to any law they want to avoid, many SovCits … contort arguments from contract law,” he said.
When asked about the video, Queensland police told AAP FactCheck that a 54-year-old man had been fined $1484 for four traffic infringements, including driving an unregistered vehicle.
The owner has since registered the car. (AAP)
