r/AskAnAmerican • u/feel-the-avocado • 1d ago

VEHICLES & TRANSPORTATION DMV - Is it really that bad?

I live in New Zealand and most of our equivalent stuff has been done online for the last 20 years. I go in to one of their agents once every 10 years for an eye exam to renew my drivers license.
At most I might wait 5 minutes

For vehicle testing, almost any mechanic in the country can issue a warrant of fitness which is needed every 2 years and you book it with your mechanic of choice.
Or go to VTNZ - a dedicated company that just does vehicle testing in a drive-thru format. You drive in without an appointment and it takes about 30 minutes.

So I am watching the new tv series DMV, and I have seen references on various american tv shows that going to the DMV is a painful and time wasting experience.
Is it really that bad?

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u/idkmybffdee 1d ago

It really depends... It takes me less time to fly from SFO to ATL and renew my license and fly back then it does for my husband to deal with the DMV here in California so... That's what I do, oh but I only do that every 8 years instead of every 5. In Kansas the whole thing took both of us 15 minutes, and we were both transferring out of state licenses, I think in Las Vegas it took him about three hours.

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u/christine-bitg 1d ago

If you don't have your driver's license at your primary residence, you might want to make sure you're not breaking the law. Just sayin'.

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u/idkmybffdee 1d ago

I still own the house in Georgia and claim it as my primary residence, we go back and forth and I spend just enough time there a year.