How to Avoid Wait Times at the DMV
Wait times at the DMV are so notoriously horrendous that they actually featured in a blockbuster movie, Zootopia, with sloths serving as the employees at the DMV.
What is the best way to avoid wait times at the DMV?
Appointments
Most DMV’s allow you to schedule appointments online. You can search your state’s DMV website and find out what they offer. An easy way to do this is to simply enter “appointments” into the search field on the state’s site.
Some states, like North Carolina, still require that you call your local DMV office to schedule an appointment.
An appointment is the number one way to avoid wait times at the DMV. Appointments are required for drivings skills tests.
Here are some links to state’s websites for online appointments:
California: Online appointments
Colorado: Online appointments
Florida: Online appointments
Georgia: Online appointments
New York: Online appointments
Nevada: Online appointments
Wisconsin: Online appointments
YoGov: Appointment Service
Yo Gov is a new company in the United States that works to get you an earlier appointment. In some states, like California, appointments can be 6 to 8 weeks out.
Yo Gov can find you an appointment that’s within 2-3 weeks at the latest, guaranteed! They work around the clock to look for last-minute appointment slots and cancellations at your local DMV, and then we snap up the first one we can find on your behalf! The process of finding you an appointment takes 4-7 days on average, but the results are worth it — sometimes we can even get an appointment within just a couple of days.
Yo Gov currently offers this service only in California, but they are working on offering the service in 19 additional states.
Seem strange? It’s actually a new kind of service popping up all over the world. Don’t want to wait in line to visit some important monument in another country, say, the Catacombs in Paris, then search online. Chances are there’s a concierge service similar to Yo Gov willing to send someone to go stand in line for you.
Other Tips
The Sacramento Bee published an article in 2018 with some helpful tips on avoiding wait times.
Below are some of the best tips from the article:
“WHAT DAYS NOT TO SHOW UP
The last day of each month is typically crowded. People are rushing to get registration tags. Also, don’t go the day after a holiday or the first day of the month. The best day of the week is usually Wednesday. But field offices don’t open on Wednesdays until 9 a.m., one hour later than usual. Field offices open on Saturdays may have shorter lines.
TRY SHOWING UP LATE
If you show up at a field office before 5 p.m. without an appointment, they will not turn you away when the doors close at 5. That means field offices are doing evening hours. There is no knowing, however, how long you will have to wait. The last appointment time each day is 4 p.m.”
Lisa Lippiner covers driving news for DMVCheatSheets.com
DMVCheatSheets.com, making the roads safer one test taker at a time.
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Highways are typically most slippery:
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