Hi all:
I just figured out yesterday that my license has been suspended for over a year!! I requested own driving record last month and finally they got to my place. I am so damn shocked, I'm still awake now at 5:00 am.
Here is the full story. Last year I landed a new job in San Diego. 2 days after I moved in, I rear-ended someone. It was cited as at-fault accident on my part, and I believe it's already cleared. The problem is the insurance claim lady I called to report the accident put the wrong date and time as 4/7/2004 3:00am, instead of the real one at 4/17/2004 3:00pm. After I argued so many times with the insurance adjuster, they wouldn't budge. The problem is compounded by me being law-abiding citizen filing SR-1 report with the real date.
Now my driving record shows 1 at-fault accident 4/7/2004 and a non-at-fault accident 4/17/2004 while there should be only one!!! DMV claimed they sent out request for FR (financial responsibility) on 6/7/2004. I have never received such notice. I have to admit also right after I moved in, I even lost some of the immigration letters up around end of June, returned to sender. Just in case you wonder, I always fill in all the address change forms, especially being H-1 visa holder, there is just simply gazillion address change forms I have to fill in, and DMV is definitely one of them. And yes, I did the forwarding letters too.
Anyway, since I did not receive the letter, I didn't send the FR reply. So they suspended my license from 7/7/2004 to 7/7/2008!! I didnt get the notice of suspension either.
Question:
1. I'm going to line up on DMV first day in the morning July 5. Do you think they will or can dismiss the suspension? I do not believe this is fair, as they did not seem to try sending me any notices. I know they have the right address because my registration renewal came in just fine. BTW, I have continuous insurance coverage since 2001 - 2006.
2. Remembering how difficult gov't body can be to deal with, I'm prepared to do the worst case scenario.... Gulp... Do I have to file in SR-22 ? Doesn't filing that mean I actually acknowledge that I'm negligent by not providing proof of insurance? I still have the proof of insurance required, if that helps at all.
3. Why didnt DMV tell me about my suspension when they sent me the registration renewal? Is it really my fault for not returning the FR proof? Isnt DMV supposed to send courtesy notice, and maybe some warning notice, and hell, in my case, also suspension notice?? I received none.
4. Since I found out that my license has been suspended yesterday, I stopped driving. Should I actually tell my complete story to DMV officer? Because doing so means admitting I have been driving under suspended license for a year.
5. My license is supposed to expire 7/10/2005 anyway. How long will reinstating this take? Because I need to renew it.
6. I believe this fiasco is due to the inefficiency of two govt agencies: DMV and USPS. It doesnt help the accident happened only 3 days after I had just moved. Can I later take legal action against them just in case I have to endure all the bad things happening to me? License suspension in effect makes me look like a criminal who drinks and drives and not having insurance!! I paid 1200 / year for my insurance, and I follow every traffic sign...
7. Should I hire a lawyer? Can a court strike an order to remove the suspension?
I just figured out yesterday that my license has been suspended for over a year!! I requested own driving record last month and finally they got to my place. I am so damn shocked, I'm still awake now at 5:00 am.
Here is the full story. Last year I landed a new job in San Diego. 2 days after I moved in, I rear-ended someone. It was cited as at-fault accident on my part, and I believe it's already cleared. The problem is the insurance claim lady I called to report the accident put the wrong date and time as 4/7/2004 3:00am, instead of the real one at 4/17/2004 3:00pm. After I argued so many times with the insurance adjuster, they wouldn't budge. The problem is compounded by me being law-abiding citizen filing SR-1 report with the real date.
Now my driving record shows 1 at-fault accident 4/7/2004 and a non-at-fault accident 4/17/2004 while there should be only one!!! DMV claimed they sent out request for FR (financial responsibility) on 6/7/2004. I have never received such notice. I have to admit also right after I moved in, I even lost some of the immigration letters up around end of June, returned to sender. Just in case you wonder, I always fill in all the address change forms, especially being H-1 visa holder, there is just simply gazillion address change forms I have to fill in, and DMV is definitely one of them. And yes, I did the forwarding letters too.
Anyway, since I did not receive the letter, I didn't send the FR reply. So they suspended my license from 7/7/2004 to 7/7/2008!! I didnt get the notice of suspension either.
Question:
1. I'm going to line up on DMV first day in the morning July 5. Do you think they will or can dismiss the suspension? I do not believe this is fair, as they did not seem to try sending me any notices. I know they have the right address because my registration renewal came in just fine. BTW, I have continuous insurance coverage since 2001 - 2006.
2. Remembering how difficult gov't body can be to deal with, I'm prepared to do the worst case scenario.... Gulp... Do I have to file in SR-22 ? Doesn't filing that mean I actually acknowledge that I'm negligent by not providing proof of insurance? I still have the proof of insurance required, if that helps at all.
3. Why didnt DMV tell me about my suspension when they sent me the registration renewal? Is it really my fault for not returning the FR proof? Isnt DMV supposed to send courtesy notice, and maybe some warning notice, and hell, in my case, also suspension notice?? I received none.
4. Since I found out that my license has been suspended yesterday, I stopped driving. Should I actually tell my complete story to DMV officer? Because doing so means admitting I have been driving under suspended license for a year.
5. My license is supposed to expire 7/10/2005 anyway. How long will reinstating this take? Because I need to renew it.
6. I believe this fiasco is due to the inefficiency of two govt agencies: DMV and USPS. It doesnt help the accident happened only 3 days after I had just moved. Can I later take legal action against them just in case I have to endure all the bad things happening to me? License suspension in effect makes me look like a criminal who drinks and drives and not having insurance!! I paid 1200 / year for my insurance, and I follow every traffic sign...
7. Should I hire a lawyer? Can a court strike an order to remove the suspension?
