CLEVELAND — The leniency given to drivers to renew their license plate tags soon will be no more as life continues to turn back to normal.
What You Need To Know
- Gov. Mike DeWine signed an extension giving drivers until July 1 to renew their license and vehicle registration
- The extension was given because of the impact the pandemic had on state offices
- Anyone who does not renew by July 1 could face consequences if pulled over
Spending the day at the Bureau of Motor Vehicles is rarely a good time, though it’s a necessity, and Denise Congel knows that well after having visited the BMV to renew her license plate tags.
Luckily for Denise, her wait wasn’t too long, only about 20 minutes.
“She takes your name. She asks what you’re here for. Once somebody has left the next person comes in and they’ll call you by your name,” said Congel.
However, that may not be the case as July 1 approaches. That’s when the extension given to drivers with expired licenses and tags after March 9, 2020 will expire.
“We know that there are about 330,000 people who took advantage of that extension over the past year who have yet to come in and renew and that’s on top of, you know, our nearly million customers a month. So you know it’s certainly going to be a busy couple of weeks at the BVM,” said Charlie Norman the registrar of the Bureau of Motor Vehicles.
Norman said though the offices will be busier than normal, the staff is working hard to make the process as smooth as possible.
“We’ll have staff from BMV field offices around the state helping to check customers in, helping to you know check documents outside make sure that people have what they need before they get in line,” Norman said.
Anyone needing services at the BMV should be prepared to wait, however, times will vary by location.
Norman said customers may use a tool on the BMV website to check live wait times and can also get in line online to reduce their wait time at the office.
“You’re virtually in line and so you’re advancing in the line at the BMV as if you were physically there,” said Norman. “So you can take time in the morning, take the kids to daycare, maybe get some work done all while you’re advancing through the queue. When you get there and check-in and claim your spot in line we find that customers that use get online get in line save about 40% wait time.”
For anyone still needing to get their license and tags taken care of, Congel said not to waste time.
“It’s not a really long process,” Congel said. “Please come in as quick as you can and the lines move very quickly.”
People who do not renew their tag or license by July 1 will be made accountable, which means starting July 2 anyone pulled over by law enforcement could receive a ticket.
