Renewed licence coupons have gone missing

I renewed two vehicle licences through the Cayman Government online renewal system. One application was made in November 2015 and the other in October 2015. I received an email message for each stating that the applications had been approved and that the new coupon was in the post. I still have not received the coupons through the post. Despite various telephone calls and emails to the DVDL, I have not been able to get this resolved. We are currently driving our cars on the road without the renewed coupons.

My concern is that the coupons are “going missing in the post” or not being sent out at all by the DVDL. Has anyone else experienced this? Seems odd that it should happen to me for both applications which were submitted at different times.

What will happen if we get stopped by the police for not showing a current coupon, even though we have email notifications from DVDL confirming that payment has been made?

I don’t want to go and queue up in the DVDL because that totally defeats the object of applying on-line.

---

Auntie’s answer: I contacted the Department of Vehicle and Drivers’ Licensing (DVDL) about your issues. A very helpful representative explained the process to me about how coupons are renewed online, and agreed it was “weird” that twice things appeared to be lost in the post.

When someone renews online, they have the option to have the coupon mailed or picked up; clearly you chose the former. The official said that once the application is made, the DVDL will usually mail the coupon the next day, or on Monday if the application comes through on a Friday. He added, “We ask for 48 hours but do our best for the next day.” In addition, the staff keeps a log of what was mailed and when.

To see where your coupon went astray, DVDL would need your plate number to check the system and track it.

Clearly, though, way too much time has passed since your coupons expired. I know you were hoping to avoid seeing the inside of that office, but the advice is for you to go to the DVDL with your receipts. Once the department has that proof of renewal, they can issue the new coupons on the spot.

You need to get those coupons and put them on your windscreens as soon as possible. Even though the police can access your records and see that you have paid for a new coupon, according to Section 5 of The Traffic Regulations, 2012, you can be ticketed for not displaying one. The regulations say that a person who “fails to display a coupon on the front windscreen on the left side of the vehicle so that it is visible at all times or, where no such windscreen is fitted to the vehicle, keep the coupon within the vehicle … commits an offence and is liable on summary conviction to the penalty set out in section 138 of the Law”.

I must tell you that the aforementioned penalty is a whopper. You can be liable to a fine of $2,500 or six months in prison, or both.

I cannot imagine you would face that extreme punishment, but I would guess there might be some fine involved. Even though this predicament does not seem to be of your doing, it seems worth it to put up with a wait at the DVDL to get this issue resolved. The official also pointed out that the end of the month is the busiest time to do business there.

If you would like to track those two wayward coupons, he suggests you email the deputy director of the DVDL with your licence plate numbers.

Tags: Department of Vehicle and Drivers’ Licensing, Vehicle licence renewal

Category: Ask Auntie