Second Experience at the DMV - Just Like the First One

Another day, another stressful three hours at the local DMV office.

Before I get started I should note that a reader (thanks Eric!) suggested AAA for renewing a license and tags, and it is a great idea. However we had to register our car and surrender our Illinois licenses so we were unable to take advantage of the automobile club this time around.

So H made an appointment last week and we figured that would save a whole lot of time once we got there. It did seem to speed up the process somewhat since we were able to jump the long line that you initially have to stand in. We also didn’t have to wait to have our number called and go to a booth.

Before getting to the DMV we have to have a smog test done since we are bringing a vehicle from another state. According to the DMV web site there are a few places in our area that offer the service. I called all four over a 3 day period and only one picked up the phone. So we headed to that place first yesterday but apparently their machine isn’t working. We happened to bump into another auto shop on our way there and swung back around to have them do it. Nope, because their tech wasn’t in yet and they had no idea when he would show up. Sounds like a solid business. They tried to give me directions to another place but we got lost quickly so we headed towards the DMV figuring their would be a place around there.

Luckily our GPS was able to point out some service stations along the way and we found a place. Really nice guy and it only took 15 minutes. Of course it cost $50 for the test and certificate. The kicker is if we had bought our car in California we would not have needed a test for six years because we own a 2008 car. You see apparently a car doesn’t have to be tested in the first six years of its life. So I feel like we got swindled because we are from out of state. But what can you do …

So we head to the DMV and are 30 minutes early. Figured that early can’t be bad. Of course a rude employee tells us we are early and he can’t help us until our scheduled time. So we sat around and watched people for a while, H worked on her Blackberry. Finally it was our turn and we head up to get the forms we need. It is at this time that H realizes she doesn’t have her birth certificate or passport (apparently it was my fault for not reminding her). I get in the car and head home to dig out the passport while she starts the process of registering the car. I return and take the car around to get inspected, she begins to get her new license. Things went smooth on my end - the inspector was nice and the process quick. Went back inside to a designated window where I was helped rather quickly. Turned in our Illinois plates and got new ones. I was done.

H was not.

Apparently when I came back with her passport she went to her designated window where a woman was emphatic that she needed to see H’s Social Security card. H said she didn’t think it was required, the woman got angry and said it was. H politely mentioned that the gentleman upfront said all she needed was a passport which I went home to retrieve and the woman replied that the man was wrong. Apparently at this point H was still calm but wasn’t going to take this answer that she knew was wrong, so she insisted that it wasn’t required when she looked things up online. At this point the woman told H not to raise her voice and not to be rude. Someone finally came over and asked what the problem was, and crazy DMV lady explained that she needed a social security card. The guy that came over said H didn’t need one. So now the two employees are going back and forth about it with the guy saying he was worked there for 20 years and knows the rules. Finally the guy takes H away and does the paperwork, no problem. On her way upstairs to take the test she stopped at the woman’s window and told her it was true, she didn’t need her SSN, haha. So upstairs to take the test which she thought she would fail. Apparently the administers of the test gave her a jokingly hard time and initially told her she had to retake it because she had too many wrong but it was all in fun (fun at the DMV?).

Total time at DMV in two visits: 5 1/2 hours

Total cost to get two CA licenses and new plates: $358

The positive out of all of this? There is a wicked hot dog stand right outside the DMV on Hope, check it out next time you are there!

Why So Rude DMV Employees?

My license was set to expire this coming Sunday so I needed to get things in gear and head over to my local DMV to get the process started.

Here in California they have a great online tool that allows you to schedule your appointment in advance in an effort to avoid the insanely long lines that usually exist at the office. Yesterday morning I went online, filled out the form and it spit back an appointment for Tuesday afternoon, which obviously isn’t going to cut it.

So I scrambled upstairs, got dressed and headed over to the DMV.

What a mess.

Okay, we all know the lines are long there and people probably aren’t prepared when they enter the office and blah blah blah. But does everyone that works there have to be rude? Almost as if it is a prerequisite.

After standing in line I was given a ticket with a number on it and the form to fill out for my new California license. When I get to a table and look at the form I find out it is not in English, but rather Spanish. Okay, no big deal. I head back over to the counter and politely ask for an English version. From the attitude I got from the guy you thought I would have asked him for his kidney. Thanks rude guy #1.

I finally get a form I can read and begin to fill it out. I am only three lines in when my number is called. I head to the window I am supposed to go to and the guy working demands my paper. He is then upset that it isn’t filled out completely. Hey man, I can’t fill this whole thing out in 30 seconds! Back over to the table to fill out the form and then back to rude guy #2. He says nothing to me as he inputs all of my worldly information into his super computer. It is important that I am not registered to vote here in the US, especially since I read an article recently where they deported a woman who accidentally was listed as registered in the DMV database. So I ask rude guy #2 if he can please make sure I am not listed. His reply, “You checked the box that says you don’t want to be registered, see right here. So I am not going to register you.”. Oooooooookay. After giving me a hard time about having my green card as my id and not my birth certificate he then wants to have a supervisor look at the ATM card I want to pay with. Look pal, I know it is a Chase card, you don’t have Chase here in California for some reason and I am sorry my card has a great picture of the Chicago skyline on it but enough already. He is finally done with everything, hands me a paper and my id back and mumbles, “Go upstairs to window 43.”. Now I said he mumbled so to be sure I ask him if what I hear was correct. In return I get a stern “That’s what I said. Next!” response. Hey rude guy #2, at this point it’s only 8:15 a.m. and you have a long day ahead of you. Relax.

Upstairs where the people are much nicer, probably because they are handing out the exams. I get my picture taken, sign a fancy electronic box for my signature and give my thumbprint. I then received “The Test”. The test was 40 questions and not at all what I was expecting. I thought I might receive a picture of a stop sign and some multiple choice questions about what I should do when I see that sign. Nope, instead I get questions about what to do if a seeing impaired person starts to walk out into the street, or what size and age a kid has to be in a car seat until. I honestly thought I was going to fail - to the point where I wondered if I should skip out of the test, grab a book to study and come back another day. Well somehow I passed with only two incorrect and the test checker was very nice about it. Of course he couldn’t double-check my voting status in the computer but he was not even close to being rude guy #3.

Apparently my California drivers license will come in the mail soon.

Unfortunately I have to return to the DMV to register our car.

Ugh.