Ignorant Historian

Yesterday I went to the DMV, where I officially replaced my Kansas driver’s license with one from North Carolina. Since in most states you only have to visit there every 8 years or so, I thought I could pass along a few tips that I picked up from visiting there yesterday and last week. These specifically apply to North Carolina but are relevant to most other states!

1. Visit mid-morning if possible. I stopped by Friday on my way to work to ask a question and saw that it was very busy. I was nervous about going later in the day because I thought that it would be busier, but guess what, it wasn’t! I think a lot of people assume it will be busier later on so they go as soon as they open, plus there are surely people who had to stop by before they went to work.

2. Find out what you will need ahead of time and have back-up documents where necessary. I stopped by last week to find out what they needed from me to prove that I had insurance. I was surprised to find out that I didn’t have exactly what the website dictated. If you can’t make an extra trip, check out the website, driver’s handbook, or phone them to find out more. If you are not sure that something will work, bring something else as well. I brought both a cable bill and my tax form as verification of residency, in case one wouldn’t work.

3. Be prepared to pay by cash or check. Maybe other states are more advanced, but I had to pay yesterday with a NC check or cash. I had neither when I walked in the door, so I had to hit a nearby pharmacy for cash (No, I don’t mean stealing, but that pharamacies are like free ATM’s for small amounts of cash. Okay, that doesn’t sound better. I promise you they charged my account for it).

4. Don’t wait until the last minute. I did this (this was my last opportunity to go before the 60-day window closed Friday), and it just added extra stress.

5. Read the driver’s book (or at least give it a good skim). Even if you have taken the test in this state before, refreshing your memory doesn’t hurt, and it will allow you to be more confident in your answers on the test. I read most of the book, but I skipped a few parts that didn’t apply to me. Just because they didn’t apply didn’t mean I wasn’t tested on them! I’m not sure how good it looked that I didn’t know the penalty for a DWI conviction, especially when I picked the lightest penalty.

6. This is a big one…don’t have your heart set on getting it all taken care of the first time. We all know stories of people who have been turned down over something silly, or its unexpectedly closed, or the system’s down, or you weren’t informed about the latest policy change. You can act with grace in these situations if your heart is in the right place.

Hopefully these tips will help you to have a pleasant DMV trip! Avoiding DMV stress certainly works for me!