Driving Licence - UK to USA (GA) need help/info.

[neejah]

Righto, we finally got over to the US a couple of weeks ago........but how on earth are you supposed to get a driving licence?

It requires an SS no. (my wifes arrived this morning - still waiting for mine) so that's OK - the next hurdle is that the vehicle needs to be insured, I thought that would be OK , we've got a rental at the moment from Hertz. So my wife telephones the Hertz office - it's not possible to do the test in the car (I don't think it stipulates this in the insurance document but hey ho......) so we need to buy and insure a car for the test.

To insure the car you need a drivers licence - catch 22 anyone? (I think there are some frims which will insure on UK licences but they look very expensive) Also, to get tags for the new car you need to proove insurance........how-with no licence?

Also, can someone please explain the whole tag & plate system to me - how do you get them i.e. if I've bought a car privately what's the sequence of events.....

Thanks

Neil

[Whatty]

You need to get a drivers license before you can buy/register/insure a car. Check your States DMV website to see what documents you need to present when applying for the license. My state (NJ) required a SS card, passport and utility bill for current home address. Once you get a drivers license the rest should be easy. As a Brit you should only need to take the theory part of the driving test as they recognize our 'superior' British drving skills

Once you have the license you can then buy a car. If you buy from a dealer then you should be able to have them register the car, or get the title documents so you can register it yourself at the DMV who will issue a registration and license plates. Again your state DMV website would be a good place to start.

Give me a shout if you have any other Q's.

Edited by Whatty on Monday 1st June 20:25

[neejah]

Whatty said:

You need to get a drivers license before you can buy/register/insure a car. Check your States DMV website to see what documents you need to present when applying for the license. My state (NJ) required a SS card, passport and utility bill for current home address. Once you get a drivers license the rest should be easy. As a Brit you should only need to take the theory part of the driving test as they recognize our 'superior' British drving skills

Give me a shout if you have any other Q's.

Edited by Whatty on Monday 1st June 20:25

That was sort of what I'd been told, but the Georgia DMV website states that we also need to do the driving test, so you need to turn up with a roadworthy vehicle with insurance......which you can't get until you have your licence!

[Whatty]

neejah said:

Whatty said:

You need to get a drivers license before you can buy/register/insure a car. Check your States DMV website to see what documents you need to present when applying for the license. My state (NJ) required a SS card, passport and utility bill for current home address. Once you get a drivers license the rest should be easy. As a Brit you should only need to take the theory part of the driving test as they recognize our 'superior' British drving skills

Give me a shout if you have any other Q's.

Edited by Whatty on Monday 1st June 20:25

That was sort of what I'd been told, but the Georgia DMV website states that we also need to do the driving test, so you need to turn up with a roadworthy vehicle with insurance......which you can't get until you have your licence!

Aaahhh..... I'd go to your local DMV and explain that you have a UK license and see if that makes a difference. It did in NJ for me. Face-to-face is often the best way of making progress with state government - a bit of charm goes a long way in my experience.

Edited by Whatty on Monday 1st June 20:45

[Steve_M]

In Texas I did my test in a hire car supplied by my company, no problems.
In fact the hire agreement was out of date the day of my test so i was sent away to get it renewed then came back same day and did my test.
License, I needed SS card, passport with visa in it and that was it.

[Hammerwerfer]

If you can borrow a car do so. US insurance covers the car and the driver need not be named unless a household memeber.

Failing that give a local driving school a ring. They can supply the car for the test without any problems.

[gudgeon]

are you a permanent resident or work visa, i moved over 2 years ago and got caught in this mess, luckily my wife is american used her car but to buy a car for my self i needad an ss number which i evevtually got, the test i had to take both parts they dont care any for the uk licence,(in fact i will be getting my motorcyle endorsement this summer)then when i passed all that (easy really 14 year do it up here)the fun started could not get a licence, had to have a letter from my employer stating why i was in the states, i live in ohio my employer in michigan, could not except a letter from them, could not go to michigan to get a licence because i lived in ohio eventually got one of my customers to write a letter saying i was serviceing his machinery in and around ohio which was true and that worked but they would only give me a temp licence for the span of my work visa which runs out dec now i have a permanent residance so can go back and get a permanent licence. word of caution on the car insurance some of the big names wanted to load up the premium for 2 years and pay a 500 dollar surcharge and if i got a ticket in the first year the surcharge was thiers shop around, here you take the title to same place you get your licence pay the tax on the car price they give you the plates then each year you pay for the little sticker, when you buy the car the dealer will give you 30 day temp tags untill you get the title in the mail

[gudgeon]

sorry.... if you buy private the seller fills out the title and signs dont be smart and say you paid 30 dollars for a 16000 dollar car they know... you then go to the licence bureu and they give you a set of 30 day temp tags you wait for the new title and then go back and get the permanent tags, i think its different if you have to get emmission done but we dont bother with that here where i live

[neejah]

gudgeon said:

sorry.... if you buy private the seller fills out the title and signs dont be smart and say you paid 30 dollars for a 16000 dollar car they know... you then go to the licence bureu and they give you a set of 30 day temp tags you wait for the new title and then go back and get the permanent tags, i think its different if you have to get emmission done but we dont bother with that here where i live

Ah, many thanks! (to all)

My wife tried to do the test in the Hertz car - and they said no as it didn't have a start & finish date on the insurance!

So we've gone out & purchased a car - insured it on english licence(s) - the binder should arrive tomorrow & plan to sit the test in it.

If we purchase privately & the previous owner wishes to keep the plates - do we drive to the DMV with no plates on the car to get the temp plates? Also, if we move counties do we need to get new plates from the DMV?

Thanks

Neil

[jeff m]

neejah said:

If we purchase privately & the previous owner wishes to keep the plates - do we drive to the DMV with no plates on the car to get the temp plates? Also, if we move counties do we need to get new plates from the DMV?

If you purchase a car privately it will come without tags (plates) the previous owner has to hand them in, failure to do so could lose him his driving lic in some states.

You only need the paper work at DMV to register the car and to get your own tags. You don't need the car.

Many Americans just stick tags on from another car and drive it home !
I don't advocate that
From sellers house to your house, ask the seller if he could deliver for beer money, or flatbet it home.

Moving counties within a state does not mean new tags.
Moving from one state to another does (eventually )

[z06tim]

I did my theory test the day i arrived in Michigan (back in 2003). I was allocated a social security number immediately on requesting one in the Secretary of State Office.

I then drove around for up to one month on what would be equivalent to our "provisional license", but i had to sit a practical test in that time. I used my enterprise rental car for the test, which was fully insured and caused no problems.

The test was very easy!