Getting an HSRP plate for my used Skoda Rapid; An entire saga!

I still don't know if I could have done it myself without involving the dealer.

BHPian 5252rpm recently shared this with other enthusiasts.

My car had no HSRP at the time of delivery. Karnataka has been mulling the HSRP roll-out and a local traffic police have once warned me for not having the windshield HSRP sticker. So, I seriously considered getting HSRP in place. (June 12th, 2024, was the last date given by the Karnataka Government before they initiated any precipitative action. The date postponement is going on from Nov 2023, though).

Did a quick web search on HSRP and the first site was SIAM.*SIAM could do only the HSRP of Delhi. Then the second link was makemyhsrp.com. I submitted my vehicle details and got to know that being a late 2019 make, my vehicle already has an active HSRP as per the portal. I presumed the owner lost it in the minor rear bumper accident (the bumper was found repainted as per my inspection) and while repairs he never bothered to replace the number board that is high security. Surprisingly, the windshield sticker was also missing. The replacement request had a mandatory FIR to be uploaded and customer care also told me I'll need to upload an FIR copy to process a replacement.

Pic: FIR Request from MakemyHSRP

I did not get enough time to go to the police station to file a complaint and wasted a few weeks. Then I stumbled upon car FANATICUS's thread on lost HSRP and realized the FIR can be registered online in Bangalore. I installed the KSP app, but couldn't find an option to register an online complaint. There was an option to register a lost certificate. I registered for lost HSRP and obtained a digitally signed certificate.

I searched again for HSRP and accidentally opened bookmyhsrp.com. In "bookmyhsrp.com", when I tried to apply for a replacement number board, it said, "You are not authorized to book re-order. For any query kindly mail to online@bookmyhsrp.com".

Pic: Error from BookMyHSRP

I wrote to their customer care to realize that for vehicles after April 2019, they cannot issue the plates online. I had to work with the sales dealer. I could have tried my luck with makemyhsrp.com at this point (as I had lost the certificate to upload), but I didn't realize that these are two different websites.

I drove to the Raja Skoda service centre in Brookfield to realize that the fitment was done at the sales office rather than the service. I reached out to Raja Skoda Ring Road and they shared the contact of a person dealing with HSRP. But despite several calls, it was unanswered. Next week while I was in Ring Road, I paid a visit for the same and explained my plight. The front office receptionist called the same HSRP POC through her phone and finally, he picked up. He asked me to share the details over WhatsApp. I shared the RC card and lost report over WhatsApp. From this point, things were quick and clear, he updated me on the progress, and I got it fixed earlier this week. The lead time was 3 days after they placed the order.

I paid INR 740 for the whole HSRP, and fitment also happened in their sales outlet in Ring Road. They did not rivet in the first go, I asked them to fix it with the rivet than letting it hang on the holder. It was a 3-4 weeks fiasco for me overall but finally, it's done! The actual lead time is 3 days, but my urge to do it myself/online dragged it a lot for sure.

Quick research shows that bookmyhsrp.com is run by Rosmerta Technologies and makemyhsrp.com is run by Celex Technologies. I still don't know if I could have done it myself without involving the dealer, or if could have gone ahead with Celex Technologies by uploading the lost report. There is no publicly available document/FAQ that says if there is any discretion between these two. Prima facia, both look like dealers of HSRP with similar power. I also found out that the order was placed from the dealer sign-in of Celex hsrp.

Lessons Learnt:

1. Add HSRP to your used car checklist. Why an extra headache?
2. This was an inspection point missed by me, cars24, Wheels Wisdom, or our Team BHP checklist.

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