Raleigh NC DMV driver’s license and plates

nhusa

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NH was always easy.. got our plates from the town clerk.
In most cases, just provide a vehicle title, pay a few dollars and go home with the plates.
No proof of insurance etc.
If the vehicle was over 20 years old all you needed was to pay a few dollars.

The drivers license required a visit to the DMV that took a couple hours that included an eye test, picture, a few documents if you wanted a “Real ID”, and the transfer of a few dollars.

Rant time…
My wife and I attempted to make an appointment to get NC drivers licenses but the soonest was sometime in late January. I called the DMV and they told me that the only way we could do it earlier was to go and stand in-line.
Today my wife and I gathered a bunch of paperwork and went to the DMV on Spring Forest Road. As expected we had to stand in line with a bunch of other people. A Nazi clerk yelled at everyone in the non-appointment line and told us that IF she let us in and we didn’t have ALL the required paper work we should go home. One of the documents she mentioned was verification of insurance, which we had.
Verification of automobile insurance for a drivers license did not make sense — it made sense for plates but not a license. I shut my mouth!

When we got inside she would not accept our insurance verification for my wife because her name was not on the paperwork.
Why in hell do you need automobile insurance to get a license ? Many states require insurance to register a vehicle but insurance to get a drivers license is idiotic. I know people that don't have cars but need a drivers license for rentals.

BTW - I talked to my insurance company. They provided the documents and laughed, saying sometimes clerks or state procedures are idiots… I agree.

Getting plates for the vehicles should be fun… will they require us to pass a rectal exam or prove we can piss in a bucket to get license plates?
 
Just make sure your cars have passed a NC state inspection before you try to get tags. If your current out of state tags are valid and not expiring, they MAY waive the inspection this year.
Every year from here on out you must do the state inspection prior to paying your taxes and registering your vehicle.

My brother-in-law lives in NH and my mother-in-law stays there in the summer. Visited once maybe 20 years ago for his wedding.
 
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Just make sure your cars have passed a NC state inspection before you try to get tags. If your current out of state tags are valid and not expiring, they MAY waive the inspection this year.
Every year from here on out you must do the state inspection prior to paying your taxes and registering your vehicle.

My brother-in-law lives in NH and my mother-in-law stays there in the summer. Visited once maybe 20 years ago for his wedding.


......................can be done online.

.
 
NH was always easy.. got our plates from the town clerk.
In most cases, just provide a vehicle title, pay a few dollars and go home with the plates.
No proof of insurance etc.
If the vehicle was over 20 years old all you needed was to pay a few dollars.

The drivers license required a visit to the DMV that took a couple hours that included an eye test, picture, a few documents if you wanted a “Real ID”, and the transfer of a few dollars.

Rant time…
My wife and I attempted to make an appointment to get NC drivers licenses but the soonest was sometime in late January. I called the DMV and they told me that the only way we could do it earlier was to go and stand in-line.
Today my wife and I gathered a bunch of paperwork and went to the DMV on Spring Forest Road. As expected we had to stand in line with a bunch of other people. A Nazi clerk yelled at everyone in the non-appointment line and told us that IF she let us in and we didn’t have ALL the required paper work we should go home. One of the documents she mentioned was verification of insurance, which we had.
Verification of automobile insurance for a drivers license did not make sense — it made sense for plates but not a license. I shut my mouth!

When we got inside she would not accept our insurance verification for my wife because her name was not on the paperwork.
Why in hell do you need automobile insurance to get a license ? Many states require insurance to register a vehicle but insurance to get a drivers license is idiotic. I know people that don't have cars but need a drivers license for rentals.

BTW - I talked to my insurance company. They provided the documents and laughed, saying sometimes clerks or state procedures are idiots… I agree.

Getting plates for the vehicles should be fun… will they require us to pass a rectal exam or prove we can piss in a bucket to get license plates?
NCDMV advised via email that since I renewed my Driver License online last time, this time I must appear in person. Thanks for the Heads Up on proof of insurance.
 
Why in hell do you need automobile insurance to get a license ? Many states require insurance to register a vehicle but insurance to get a drivers license is idiotic. I know people that don't have cars but need a drivers license for rentals.
He’s got a point on this one. One could have a drivers license, but not own a car that they need to insure. While it may be an exception rather than a common case, it could happen.
 
He’s got a point on this one. One could have a drivers license, but not own a car that they need to insure. While it may be an exception rather than a common case, it could happen.
There is (or at least used to be) a license option for rental/fleet vehicles only where insurance isn’t required. I learned this sitting in a DMV several years ago listening to all the employees talk to the barely-speaks-English crowd. They’d ask about insurance and the applicant didn’t have it. The offer would be made for a restricted license, which they all (presumably lying) agreed to.

I could see situations like foreign exchange students using this in a legit manner. But I don’t believed that’s what most of what I saw involved.

Found this blurb just now trying to get more info:

RESTRICTED LICENSE
(For use with rental cars ONLY)
Same requirements as the full driver’s license except does not require auto insurance. Can only be used with rental cars. When renting a car, you must purchase liability auto insurance from the rental car agency.
NOTE: If you are caught driving a private car with the restricted license, you will be subject to the same punish- ment as driving without a license.

That wasn’t from the NCDMV site, but this little nugget is, which suggests the option is still available:

  • An individual who does not own or drive a currently registered vehicle can still apply for a license but might be restricted to driving only fleet vehicles. To remove the restriction, they must present proof of financial liability insurance and pay a duplicate-license fee.
 
Just make sure your cars have passed a NC state inspection before you try to get tags. If your current out of state tags are valid and not expiring, they MAY waive the inspection this year.
Every year from here on out you must do the state inspection prior to paying your taxes and registering your vehicle.

My brother-in-law lives in NH and my mother-in-law stays there in the summer. Visited once maybe 20 years ago for his wedding.
If the vehicles were inspected in NH in the last 90 days, then inspection isn't needed.
If inspection is needed it can be done within a set time after registration.
I found this it when I got my brother's truck from MA. Went to get it inspected here after registration and the inspection station said it wasn't needed because it had been inspected a month earlier in MA.

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NC is among the few states that actually enforces the requirement to have auto insurance.
Let your insurance lapse? License and registration get suspended.
Just because you didn't have to deal with this before doesn't mean it is crazy to have it.
NH doesn't require insurance.
MA did but has no enforcement mechanism unless one gets pulled over it gets in a wreck.
Inspection is required in most states. But NC links it to registration. That way we don't have those damn stickers on the window. Police in sticker states live them. They create PC for a stop and harass when there is nothing else wrong. People forget to do the inspection in time.


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NC used to be easy to get a license. Then the illegals found out about it and NC was their first stop after swimming across the Rio Grande. When the Republicans took over the Legislature in 2010, they made NC one of the most strict states with regard to documents (queue the “racist” cries here). I know it’s a pain, but you are less likely to be paying for accidents out of your pocket due to the guy at fault not having insurance (or not being the guy it says on the license).
 
NH was always easy.. got our plates from the town clerk...

Getting plates for the vehicles should be fun… will they require us to pass a rectal exam or prove we can piss in a bucket to get license plates?
Well, bless your little ole hearts! Welcome to NC.
 
Going through this now with my son trying to get his license. DMV and registration in this state are ridiculous and I don’t mind recent transplants from other states complaining about it.
 
There’s an old saying. “We can talk bad our mommas, but youse, I mean, y’all can’t talk bad about our mamas”.

The DMV may be full of blithering idiots, but they’re OUR blithering idiots.

:p
 
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I'll admit that navagating the DMV and then the registration and plate contractors was a considerable investment in patience and time. I'm thankful that I got my business done just before the covid crazyness started as the waits now are reported to be far longer than when I sailed those waters. You won't catch me looking over my shoulder at my northern origins except with contempt though. It's important to remember that some of the "little conveniences" like near immediate (but awful) service at government offices, street lights on the highways, and sidewalks everywhere all came at a price. Taxes here are what they are because the fine people down here haven't allowed them to creep to the sky while funneling those monies into cronies' pockets.

As another option to make the DMV easier, consider skipping the REAL ID non-sense and get a passport card from the US Government. It'll do everything a REAL ID will and more, and it's less trouble to obtain.

I was the victim of a drunk who destroyed the two month old Mercedes I was driving, then drove away. I chased him down and got the cops on him only to find he had a license(special card for Illinois Illegals), no insurance, and no legal right to be in the country. He posted $300 bail and disappeared and left me with tens of thousands in damage on a new car to work out with my insurance company. So the whole "gotta have insurance to have a license" plays big with me. NC has their business in order on this issue.
 
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Getting plates for the vehicles should be fun… will they require us to pass a rectal exam or prove we can piss in a bucket to get license plates?

I wasn't going to say this, but then sometimes I just can't help myself.

I believe the process is adequately difficult. We (as in me and my special peeps) would rather put folks through the gauntlet of providing appropriate documents and coverages to obtain plates and licenses than have a bunch of unlicensed, unregistered, and uninsured Yankees driving our roads. See post # 22 by @Timfoilhat above.
 
As another option to make the DMV easier, consider skipping the REAL ID non-sense and get a passport card from the US Government. It'll do everything a REAL ID will and more, and it's less trouble to obtain.
How is the REAL ID trouble to obtain? They provide a list of documents on the website. You can pick very common and readily available options for every category.

Got mine on the first try when renewing my CDL. Got my son’s on the first try when getting him an ID card a couple years ago…and it transferred to his learners permit a month ago.
 
How is the REAL ID trouble to obtain? They provide a list of documents on the website. You can pick very common and readily available options for every category.

Got mine on the first try when renewing my CDL. Got my son’s on the first try when getting him an ID card a couple years ago…and it transferred to his learners permit a month ago.
A Certified birth certificate from state office of vital stats is a pain to get if it's coming from out of state and some people don't have a passport and the legal alien documents don't apply.


1639063585717.png
 
A Certified birth certificate from state office of vital stats is a pain to get if it's coming from out of state and some people don't have a passport and the legal alien documents don't apply.


View attachment 407403
Ok. I’ve had my son’s birth certificate since he was born. And I’ve had mine since my parents passed it on to me decades ago. I guess some people don’t keep that kind of stuff. 🤔
 
Ok. I’ve had my son’s birth certificate since he was born. And I’ve had mine since my parents passed it on to me decades ago. I guess some people don’t keep that kind of stuff. 🤔
Some may not have birth certificates due to them being
1639070894361.png
 
My bitch is about having to prove insurance to get a drivers license.
I have no problem with Real ID requirements and no issues with proving you are a citizen to vote.
In fact I think that citizenship proof and you are alive should be a requirement for voting.

I have no problem with proving insurance to register a vehicle, but a drivers license is stupidity.
 
Not for a drivers license.


Not sure what your situation is, but I can.




From https://www.ncdot.gov/dmv/license-id/renewal-replacement/Pages/license-renewal.aspx


Ready to Renew?
Online driver license and ID renewal allows eligible customers to conveniently and quickly renew their driver license up to six months before their license expires or within two years of expiration.
Online full provisional license upgrade allows eligible customers to change to an original Class C driver license once they have reached their 18th birthday and until their 21st birthday.

Requirements & Restrictions​

Driver License​

An individual who meets any of the following must visit an NCDMV driver license office:
  • Has a suspended license or outstanding debt with NCDMV
  • Has a restriction other than "Corrective Lenses" on their driver license and/or “24” on their full provisional license
  • Needs to renew a commercial driver licenses, regular Class A or B driver license, limited provisional license, limited learner permit or learner permit
  • Has a U.S. government document indicating legal presence
  • Has used the online system for the previous renewal. Individuals can only use the online system every other license renewal.

.
 
When I moved to NC and brought an out-of-state vehicle with me, my designated PITA was that my insurance company wasn't licensed in NC.
Buy new insurance
Cancel old insurance
Wait for check from pro-rated canceled insurance.

First and last month rent+deposit with Duke Power (because I never had an account with them before)+new insurance was a huge drain on someone who was moving here to start a job fresh from college.
 
Just because you didn't have to deal with this before doesn't mean it is crazy to have it.
Gunna make me dig up that I-95N sign ain't he?
Well, bless your little ole hearts! Welcome to NC.
There’s an old saying. “We can talk bad our mommas, but youse, I mean, y’all can’t talk bad about our mamas”.

The DMV may be full of blithering idiots, but they’re OUR blithering idiots.

:p
I wasn't going to say this, but then sometimes I just can't help myself.

I believe the process is adequately difficult. We (as in me and my special peeps) would rather put folks through the gauntlet of providing appropriate documents and coverages to obtain plates and licenses than have a bunch of unlicensed, unregistered, and uninsured Yankees driving our roads. See post # 22 by @Timfoilhat above.
NH was always easy.. got our plates from the town clerk.
In most cases, just provide a vehicle title, pay a few dollars and go home with the plates.
No proof of insurance etc.
If the vehicle was over 20 years old all you needed was to pay a few dollars.

The drivers license required a visit to the DMV that took a couple hours that included an eye test, picture, a few documents if you wanted a “Real ID”, and the transfer of a few dollars.
Why Oh Why would you Ever LEAVE such a heavenly paradise???????????????????????
 
Why Oh Why would you Ever LEAVE such a heavenly paradise???????????????????????

That's what I was wondering as well.

Apparently Californians are leaving the state and moving to Idaho, but then they're injecting their liberal ideas into Idaho to turn it into California. Some folks won't learn.
 
I sure didn’t expect to see such support for government run agencies on this forum.
When I moved to NC, I was shocked to show up at the DMV to find two buses full of new non-English-speaking residents herded into line to get licenses.

A few years later, I was furious to find that a nasty and imperious Spanish interpreter had been put in charge of front-line workers taking documents because so many of the documents were in Spanish and from other countries.

Changes in the license requirements have culled the vast majority of the most obvious illegals trying to get licenses. Online scheduling and online renewals have also done a lot to make the process easier.

As @Timfoilhat pointed out, a passport is an alternative to Real-ID, and a passport is a good idea in other ways.
 
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When I moved to NC I was amazed at how fast and painless the process was to get a state DL license and plates for my vehicles. I did the DL in Fuquay and the plates in Angier.
 
Ever hear of deep snow and Massholes?
Paradise is being invaded by communists.

There is hope NC would be a bit more logical.
The invasion started here when IBM came to RTP in the mid sixties.

Yer late.
 
Exactly how I feel about NC.
It seems that they are everywhere… just more active in some places…like Mass, NY, Califunny, CT, MD, VA, Chicago —- OK west coast, east coast north of NC, North central, and anyplace with handouts
 
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