Anyone get their CA HOV stickers?

[Boomer23]

I finally got my plates from the DMV, so then its off to AAA tomorrow to exchange them for my personalized plates!

Then I can register for the HOV lanes and the Parking decal. I am a bit confused about the parking decal, is it just for EV parking spots or can you get
free parking in some areas where you normally have to pay to park?

"Finally"? I picked my car up on March 30. I "finally" got my plates on June 2. I wonder if there is a staffing issue at the DMV???

 

[hill]

"Finally"? I picked my car up on March 30. I "finally" got my plates on June 2. I wonder if there is a staffing issue at the DMV???

IMO it aint staffing. The DMV folks are simply working at a pace indicative of people being forced to take days of etc, to meet budget constraints. We have a guy in our department whose wife is working for the DMV. She says DMV folks are P.O.'d. I got a parking ticket about 2 months ago, for a Prius that I'd long since sold back when we got the leaf. The DMV thinks we still own it according to their records. ya gotta love bureaucracy. Yea, time is too important. I'm just going to pay the $80 and move on.
:?

 

[TomT]

In today's economy they should be happy that they HAVE a job, and excellent benefits besides - far better than most in the private sector get...

IMO it aint staffing. The DMV folks are simply working at a pace indicative of people being forced to take days of etc, to meet budget constraints. We have a guy in our department whose wife is working for the DMV. She says DMV folks are P.O.'d. I got a parking ticket about 2 months ago, for a Prius that I'd long since sold back when we got the leaf. The DMV thinks we still own it according to their records. ya gotta love bureaucracy. Yea, time is too important. I'm just going to pay the $80 and move on.

 

[rawhog]

.

 

[sdbmania]

I finally got my plates from the DMV, so then its off to AAA tomorrow to exchange them for my personalized plates!

Then I can register for the HOV lanes and the Parking decal. I am a bit confused about the parking decal, is it just for EV parking spots or can you get
free parking in some areas where you normally have to pay to park?

"Finally"? I picked my car up on March 30. I "finally" got my plates on June 2. I wonder if there is a staffing issue at the DMV???

I guess it just felt longer then it really was.

In Reply to Hill:
You can remove your name on the DMV website. I forget how, but I think it has something to do with removing yourself form the title in their database.

 

[Boomer23]

Might want to rethink that approach. If DMV thinks you still own the car paying the fine is not going to change that. You will still be liable for anything that happens with/to/because of that car. You SERIOUSLY need to get your name off that car. Trust me. Been there done that. It can be pretty bad. If there is a crime and that car gets reported as being involved, guess who's door they are going to knock on.

"Finally"? I picked my car up on March 30. I "finally" got my plates on June 2. I wonder if there is a staffing issue at the DMV???

IMO it aint staffing. The DMV folks are simply working at a pace indicative of people being forced to take days of etc, to meet budget constraints. We have a guy in our department whose wife is working for the DMV. She says DMV folks are P.O.'d. I got a parking ticket about 2 months ago, for a Prius that I'd long since sold back when we got the leaf. The DMV thinks we still own it according to their records. ya gotta love bureaucracy. Yea, time is too important. I'm just going to pay the $80 and move on.
:?

+1 rawhog. Hill, you'll definitely want to get your name off that old carwith the DMV before something more serious than a parking ticket happens.

 

[Cinnabar]

In today's economy they should be happy that they HAVE a job, and excellent benefits besides - far better than most in the private sector get...

IMO it aint staffing. The DMV folks are simply working at a pace indicative of people being forced to take days of etc, to meet budget constraints. We have a guy in our department whose wife is working for the DMV. She says DMV folks are P.O.'d. I got a parking ticket about 2 months ago, for a Prius that I'd long since sold back when we got the leaf. The DMV thinks we still own it according to their records. ya gotta love bureaucracy. Yea, time is too important. I'm just going to pay the $80 and move on.

I think it at least just as likely that your dealer was slow in getting the paperwork to the DMV. Mine submitted it electronically and I had my plates within a few weeks. It is also your responsibility to make sure ownership has been transferred, although if you had traded your Prius in, the dealer messed up there. If you sold it to a private party, you better get the title stuff cleaned up as others have pointed out.

 

[linkim]

Received pleasant surprise this weekend. Requested HOV stickers by mail on 5/20 and found the white stickers in the mail 6/11. Close to 3 week turn around. Is that a record for processing the HOV request?

 

[ttweed]

Received pleasant surprise this weekend. Requested HOV stickers by mail on 5/20 and found the white stickers in the mail 6/11. Close to 3 week turn around. Is that a record for processing the HOV request?

We got ours in 3 weeks (reported on p. 21 of this thread). The parking sticker was another story, though--sent it in separately and it was returned saying we already had HOV stickers issued (p. 27 of this thread). I resubmitted the app June 1 with a note pointing out that this was for the parking sticker, not HOV sticker (different app, different fee) and our parking sticker showed up in the mail yesterday, a turnaround of 10 days, amazingly. Maybe they were embarrassed by the mistake they made.

TT

 

[earther]

Received pleasant surprise this weekend. Requested HOV stickers by mail on 5/20 and found the white stickers in the mail 6/11. Close to 3 week turn around. Is that a record for processing the HOV request?

No credit due to me, but somehow I think I just beat that record: Forms and payment mailed out on June 4th (separate checks, but same envelope), and I received both the ZEV and HOV stickers (in the same envelope) today, June 13th.
Unbelievably fast turnaround -- Thanks CA DMV!

 

[Randmac]

No credit due to me, but somehow I think I just beat that record: Forms and payment mailed out on June 4th (separate checks, but same envelope), and I received both the ZEV and HOV stickers (in the same envelope) today, June 13th.
Unbelievably fast turnaround -- Thanks CA DMV!

Exactly the same for me: Mailed ZEV and HOV applications in same envelope with two checks on June 4th and received all stickers today, June 13th. Also received the plates today.

 

[thankyouOB]

No credit due to me, but somehow I think I just beat that record: Forms and payment mailed out on June 4th (separate checks, but same envelope), and I received both the ZEV and HOV stickers (in the same envelope) today, June 13th.
Unbelievably fast turnaround -- Thanks CA DMV!

Exactly the same for me: Mailed ZEV and HOV applications in same envelope with two checks on June 4th and received all stickers today, June 13th. Also received the plates today.

envy envy envy. -- a 10-day turnaround.
that is amazing.
But these almost 7 weeks since purchase is very tolerable.
after getting the license-plate # early from the dealer; that is before the plates actually arrived here, I mailed May 19 together in one envelope TWO checks and separate apps for parking and HOV.
they appeared at my back yesterday as submitted June 10.
waiting for the letter carrier.
it would be four weeks if they came today.

 

[astrorob]

i know you're supposed to wait until you have plates to submit these forms, but i think the DMV will sit on the applications until the plates have been allocated. that's what happened with my new prius back in 2005/6.

however, does anyone know what the risks are if you submit the paperwork before the dealer has transmitted the forms to the DMV? in that case the DMV will have no record of the VIN. i bought the car 9 days ago and as of 2 days ago at the DMV window at the AAA they could not find my car in their computer by looking up the VIN. will the DMV just send your application back? that could take more time. supposedly dealers have 20 business days to submit the paperwork to the DMV.

problem here is that our commute depends heavily on carpool stickers and i want to get this going as fast as possible. i know we're not going to have the stickers on July 1 but the sooner, the better.

 

[davewill]

i know you're supposed to wait until you have plates to submit these forms, but i think the DMV will sit on the applications until the plates have been allocated. that's what happened with my new prius back in 2005/6.

however, does anyone know what the risks are if you submit the paperwork before the dealer has transmitted the forms to the DMV? in that case the DMV will have no record of the VIN.

They sent my applications and checks back with a note saying the VIN wasn't in the system, yet. So, the only "risk" is having to try again.

 

[astrorob]

i know you're supposed to wait until you have plates to submit these forms, but i think the DMV will sit on the applications until the plates have been allocated. that's what happened with my new prius back in 2005/6.

however, does anyone know what the risks are if you submit the paperwork before the dealer has transmitted the forms to the DMV? in that case the DMV will have no record of the VIN.

They sent my applications and checks back with a note saying the VIN wasn't in the system, yet. So, the only "risk" is having to try again.

thanks. maybe i'll wait and keep polling the DMV.

 

[qcar]

I mailed my parking and hov sticker applications in the day I bought my car on Apr 28. I received a call from the special division around the Middle of May telling me they were waiting for my dealer to pay the DMV fees. About this time my custom plates arrived at the DMV that I had ordered months ago. I called the dealer to find out the problem and found out there was a problem with my lease agreement that needed to be fixed prior to Nissan buying it from the dealer. I went in and fixed that and they told me it would go through right away. I called the DMV special processing unit and explained and the person told me it was fine and my stickers should be coming soon (That was a misstatement). Sadly on June 3rd or so I received my checks and applications back with the notice that the vin wasn't registered yet. Slightly pissed off I called the dealer who checked to make sure everything went through. If the special processing unit would have kept my applications for a few more days everything would have been fine. On the 4th I received my plates and I picked up my custom plates on the 6th and I mailed it all back to Sacramento the same day--- hopefully will get them any day now.

So the moral of the story is mail them in the day you buy the car with the plate field blank. Assuming you don't have a month delay like I did because of the dealer snafu (which incidentally was caused by the dealer trying to save me some money) the processing unit should hold your applications for about 30 days or so which should be enough time to get the VIN in the DMV computers. Make sure the dealer indicates its an electric car on the registration as well. While I did not have this problem, some applications were delayed because of this according to the DMV.

 

[jmillington]

Quick turn-around of 12 days for me.

5/23/11 - sent application and check
6/1/11 - check cashed
6/4/11 - received stickers

So that's 9 days to receive and cash the check, and I received the stickers 3 days later.

 

[rawhog]

.

 

[oakwcj]

I got my pink slip in the mail today, June 16th. It has an issue date of June 18th, so I guess it came from the future. My plates and registration have not yet arrived. How much of a lag -- if any -- is typical? I sent in my HOV sticker application on the 2nd, so I'm hoping that I waited just long enough for my car to be entered into the DMV database.

 

[thankyouOB]

Sent app May 19
checks cashed June 10
Mailed from DMV June 15
arrive stickers June 17