West Virginia might fall to the bottom of the list in plenty of categories, but increasingly we are leading the way in others. Among those is the improvement of residents’ interactions with the government through technology.

To that end, the state Division of Motor Vehicles partnered with Champ Titles and Tyler Technologies to develop the country’s first digital vehicle title program.

Among the reasons for developing the digital titles (and making them fully transactable) was to help car dealers and operators of large fleets stay organized and up-to-date. But the system will be a benefit to many individual vehicle owners, too. How many of us are unsure which box or filing cabinet a vehicle title has been stuffed into when the need for it arises? Now they are at our fingertips.

West Virginia digital titles have been added to the 2024 J.D. Power Title and Registration book, and can be verified here: apps.wv.gov/dmv/digitalverification. But don’t worry, a printed version is available, too.

“We are so pleased to have such a bold and forward-thinking partner in the West Virginia DMV. The state’s constituent-first approach to upgrading infrastructure continues today with the Digital Title. This technology will be a gamechanger for the country, realizing the digital efficiency that Champ Titles set out to achieve when it was founded,” said CEO Shane Bigelow.

West Virginia has also teamed up with DDI Technology to be part of a nationwide pilot effort in which DDI tested some of the digital and printed versions of West Virginia’s title transactions throughout the country, using the tools created in the Mountain State.

“This was a hypercare pilot, where we engaged with our partners to guide the Digital Title transactions through the entire process,” said Kevin Park, government affairs and industry relations manager of insurance auto auctions at DDI. “We demonstrated usability, proved the verification tools, and validated the end-to-end security of the program.”

Assuming those who are used to more traditional paper titles and interactions with the DMV will continue to be able to conduct their business, this development is an example of how groundbreaking ideas CAN take hold in West Virginia. We CAN be a force for progress, and demonstrate it to others.

We’ve just got to have the drive to do it