VW FS roll out digital vehicle registration with dealer partners

Volkswagen Financial Services (VW FS) is taking another step toward digital transformation by rolling out a streamlined digital vehicle registration solution in collaboration with its dealer partners. The Braunschweig-based financial and mobility services provider is introducing this service through its joint venture, MyDigitalCar, enabling car dealerships to handle vehicle registrations swiftly and efficiently.

The digital registration platform allows vehicles to be registered, re-registered, or deregistered in just a few minutes. This eliminates the need for customers to visit registration offices, significantly reducing time and bureaucratic processes. VW FS is leveraging software approved by Germany’s Federal Motor Transport Authority (KBA), the only platform currently cleared for all types of vehicle registrations. This marks a new era of convenience for both dealers and customers, simplifying a process that has long been considered cumbersome.

VW FS has been using digital registration technology since 2019 during a pilot project approved by the Lower Saxony state government. This early adoption allowed the company to contribute to the practical testing that led to updates in the German Vehicle Registration Ordinance, laying the legal foundation for widespread digital registration across the country.

“We are very proud that we are further advancing digitalisation directly at the point of sale and thus creating real added value for our dealer partners and customers. Wearisome bureaucratic procedures, waiting times and excessive costs are now a thing of the past. The feedback from dealers has been very positive so far. I firmly believe that in the future the majority of registrations in Germany will be digital.”

Effective immediately, car dealerships partnering with VW FS can register vehicles digitally with just a few clicks. Through a simple online process, dealers receive immediate digital confirmation of the registration, allowing customers to drive off the lot without delay. The official documents, including registration certificates and license plate stickers, are sent by post afterward, ensuring a hassle-free experience.

The platform also supports the decommissioning or deregistration of vehicles. By scanning codes on the vehicle’s registration certificate and license plates, dealers can complete the process in minutes.

The foundation for the national rollout of this system was laid through a project in Braunschweig, where VW FS, in collaboration with the City of Braunschweig, Lower Saxony’s state government, and the German Federal Ministry for Digital and Transport (BMDV), successfully trialled the digital registration process. This initiative provided valuable insights, which contributed to the integration of digital signatures into the registration process at the federal level. Several hundred VW FS company cars were registered digitally as part of this pioneering project.

To extend the benefits of digital vehicle registration to a broader audience, VW FS partnered with technology consultancy Sopra Steria to create the joint venture MyDigitalCar GmbH in June 2023. This specialised platform offers digital registration solutions to car dealerships, fleet operators, leasing companies, and rental car businesses, potentially facilitating millions of digital registrations annually.