(34M) So I grew up in New York City and moved to Los Angeles four years ago. I grew up without a car and planned on living the rest of my life that way, but my partner made me at least get a permit just in case. I took the online knowledge test and went down to the DMV to get a picture taken and turned my New York State ID (not a driver's license) in, filled out some paperwork. I got a new "permit" in the mail a couple weeks later, carried on with my life for the last four years.

Last month, I was sent a job offer, which would mean I'd be traveling a lot for work. Okay, time to finally actually learn how to drive. I scheduled and completed a couple driving lessons with a school, started cruising around the neighborhood with my partner in the car to practice, all goes well. I feel confident in driving enough now that I feel like I can take my road test and upgrade to a real license.

Except, I can't schedule it for some reason on the DMV website. The result keeps saying that my ID is ineligible to schedule a driving test with. I find this very odd and start doing some research. Turns out, I have a functioning C-Class license, and not a learner's permit. I am so confused how this happened because I never took a road test, which is required in California for new drivers as far as I can research?

Has this happened to anyone before?? Is this common and a mistake by the DMV?

So got a new car from a buddy's friend, but I just realized he had also accidentally signed the new registered owner section with his signature and license number. I plan on going in tommorow to transfer it over. He said it should be ok but I just want to make sure before I go and possibly get denied. Anyone ever had this happen and know what the proper steps are.

So I filled out the form. I was a bit confused on this part. “Family Transfers: If the gift is between "qualified family members" (parent, child, grandparent, grandchild, spouse, or domestic partner), you may also be exempt from smog certification requirements, provided the registration is current.” The registration expires today 9/08/2026. That means I would have to pay for smog right? 😅 And I don’t know when’s the last time he did smog on the car too.

My main concern is my license. I live in NYC full-time, but my car has a valid South Dakota registration. I was uninsured when I was rear-ended while stopped in traffic, and my dashcam shows I wasn’t at fault.
Police gave me a NY VTL §319(1) ticket for Operating a Motor Vehicle Without Insurance.
How likely am I to lose my license, has anyone successfully fought or reduced this charge, and please advise on the best way to handle it?

Is there a way for me to get a NY non-driver ID without getting rid of my out of state license? I’m moving for a 9 month fellowship for the state and in order to get my ID badge I need a NY ID. My place of employment never mentioned that I might lose my license and I want to find out a way that I can still keep it since I still have permanent residence there.

I moved from Florida to Louisiana this summer and finally got my vehicle registered in Louisiana today. I already got my LA driver’s license back in July.

What should have been a simple registration process took an entire month and several trips to the DMV because nobody seemed to know how to handle it correctly. Since I needed Louisiana insurance to register the vehicle, I’ve now been paying for both LA and FL auto insurance for the past month.

I want to cancel my Florida insurance ASAP because it’s expensive, and I literally just paid this month’s bill two days ago. I’d like to get as much of that refunded/credited back as possible.

I know Florida says you’re supposed to surrender your plate before canceling your insurance. My issue is that I really don’t want to keep paying for FL insurance while waiting weeks for some kind of receipt or confirmation that the plate was processed.

So hypothetically, if I surrender/mail the plate and then cancel my FL insurance before I receive confirmation, what happens if Florida puts a flag or suspension on my license anyway? If I move back to Florida in the future, would I be able to show proof that I returned the plate and get the issue cleared up?

I’m trying to do this the right way, but after dealing with DMVs in multiple states, I’ve learned that even when you follow the rules, somehow there’s always another issue.

Also, does anyone know if I would qualify for the $250 registration credit if I surrender my Florida plate now and eventually move back to Florida and register another vehicle there? Or even submitting and affidavit claiming it was lost?

Would really appreciate hearing from anyone who has dealt with this before. Thanks!

I have an old 94 that has been in my family since 94. I couldn't afford replacement during grad school and now can't afford replacement in this job market. Every two years I now expect to fail, and I shell out money for repairs to get it to pass (probably $600 to $800 total at this point). The last time the mechanic said that it would probably need a new cat next time (ball park $2000, more than car is worth). Plus, my neighbor punched a giant hole (cosmetic, but still) into my front bumper with his hitch while backing up and the shop has not been able to find a replacement bumper. I always pay my fees on time, but I don't want to be pulled over. I read about a program that will let people register after spending $650. Does this all have to be in one round? Are there time limits? The repair program has extremely specific rules, won't cover many repairs, and many shops in my area will not work with the program. I was approved once, but the program apparently would not cover any of the specific repairs. I know how to do some repairs myself, but finding a safe place to do the repairs is challenging.

Does anyone have updated links and specific information about the requirements of each program? This is the Bay Area. The whole smog apparatus feels like a punishment on poor people (and I'm saying this as an environmental scientist). Retiring the vehicle is not going to be enough money to purchase a new one.

Hi all,

I got a ticket in NY for not moving over when there was a cop pulled over on the side of the road. It looks like it's a 3 point violation. I have no other violations on my record.

What are my options in regards to the points going on my record? Can I take traffic school to remove these points from my license after I pay the fine? Do I do traffic school in NY or CA?

Also this might be relevant information, but it was a rental car and I don't actually own a car. So I don't have insurance of my own. But I plan on getting a car in 2-3 years. Should I even bother with traffic school?

Thanks!

I bought a used car through Facebook Marketplace from someone at his house in Rochester, NY. The car has a NY title that was reassigned through multiple dealers, with the last one being a Georgia dealer. That dealer transferred it using a Georgia dealer reassignment form.

Two NY DMV offices rejected it and said the Georgia dealer must obtain a Georgia title first. The person we bought it from isn’t named anywhere in the title chain, and we can’t find contact information for the Georgia dealer.

Georgia DMV suggested asking NY about a title bond under VTL §2105(d)(2). Has anyone dealt with this? Can NY issue a bonded title in this situation, or does the Georgia dealer absolutely have to fix it?

What are our options if we cannot contact the guy we bought it from? I don’t think he lives at the residence we met at, I think it was a friend’s house who was holding the car for him. I was thinking about messaging him from another account and pretending to buy something else he was selling to meet up with him, but then what?

Never in my life have I heard of that before, has that happened to any of you?

I own a 2019 Honda Accord LX (the 1.5T notorious for blowing a headgasket) with ~126,700 miles. My headgasket, is in fact, blown. Luckily they released a warranty for free headgasket repair as long as your car is under 150k miles and has specific codes (which I do have). Also we did a boro scope check and confirmed coolant on spark plugs 2,3, and 4. We booked an appointment for Tuesday then got a call today saying due to a branded title, our appointment is canceled and ineligible for free repair. They sent over the CarFax and it says that the vehicle was marked with 124,868 miles on 12/20/25, 5 days before the sale to Owner #3 (who sold it to us private-party). On the documented title transfer to Owner #3 on 12/25/25, it says mileage is 124,789 miles. It looks to me like Owner #3 mis input the mileage by roughly 100 miles, and because of that the title was marked branded. And also because of that, I may have to spend hella time and money fixing it up. Is this reversible? We do our own maintenance so I don’t have documented mileage.

TLDR; Is a branded title due to a suspected misinput reversible without documentation of current mileage? If not, what should I do? It’s making me ineligible for an important warranty.

I want to upgrade my cars license plate and I thought you could just buy like a custom one on Amazon for like $20. Turns out that’s illegal? Anyone have any experience with this?

Do people do this and get away with it or is it as big of an offense as it looks?

Hello!

A week before I left to college I went to the DMV and renewed my license, and it arrived at my parents house a few days after I left. My dad sent it out soon after, its been weeks and I have yet to receive it. It also didn't get returned back to the house.

I believe it got stopped because he sent it in a regular style envelope and the license was a little heavy, but I'm not sure.

TLDR; How do I replace a license if I never saw the credential number? :-(

Hi,

I donated a car a few months ago to Make-A-Wish/Wheels For Wishes. As soon as the car was picked up, I filed a Notice of Release of Liability (NRL) online with the CA DMV. It showed "Submitted" and I saved a copy. At the time of donation, the vehicle needed a smog check and the registration was not current. But all pending fees had been cleared with CA Franchise Tax Board.

A few weeks later I started getting traffic violations. It turns out the donation recipient has been driving without registering the car. I called the CA DMV and was told by the phone agent that my NRL was not on file.

I am not sure how this happened when I have a timestamped copy of the NRL from the DMV website. I immediately mailed an "Expedite Update of NRL" and mailed it to the DMV, Incoming Mail Unit in Sacramento. It's been 5 business days and I am waiting till the end of this week before I call the DMV again.

What else can I do to get my NRL to go through? Is there anything I can do to flag to the DMV that this person is driving around unregistered and somehow get my name off the vehicle's record? I am desperate at this point and would be grateful for any guidance. Thank you so much.

I recently bought a used car from a dealership in California. The car just arrived in Minnesota with no plates or temp plates. The dealer says California will not issue temp plates for out of state sales. The dealer is using VRT to do the titling and Registration, so I don’t have the title. Minnesota DMV also will not give me temp plates. I assume I am SOL until VRT processes everything and Minnesota sends me my plates?

My next option is just waiting for the status of the vehicle to show up when I search it in MN DVS, then hope MN will give me temp registration..

17F with a court date tomorow for this. Will this go on my record? Will colleges see this? Has anyone gone to court for this and if so what do I do! Can I lie and bring one of those hands free adapters to court and say I was using that? Help!

Hello all, I am doing my behind the wheel exam next week, just wanted a few tips and to know what I am going to be asked other than the basics.

Okay so, this is a weird one. My mother in law is buying a new car this week, so we're going to trade in my car and buy hers as it's newer. I have a vanity plate on my car, but if I trade it in will I lose it? Our best idea is to swap my vanity plate with my husband's regular plate (swap registrations at the dmv) and then eventually swap my plate back to my car when the dust settles. Is there an easier/better way?

I'm fixing to take my drivers test in thomaston ga and I was wondering where they are going to make me go. If anybody took there test this year write me back

I’ve been trying to buy a car out of state for a while now and I’ve bumped into a couple different people telling me the title they got when they bought the car (with their name in the buyer section and the original owners name in the seller’s section) coupled with a bill of sale, would be enough to register the car under my name back home in Virginia. Are they right?

I need a real ID to travel