State Offers Email Reminder Of DL Expiration

By Lori Fullbright, The News On 6

JENKS, OK -- Letting your driver's license expire can be a headache.  You can't renew it without getting a state issued original birth certificate or a passport.  To help you avoid all that, the state is now giving people 45 days early notice before your license is set to expire.

When you notice your driver's license is about to expire, it's easy to get it renewed at an area tag agency.  But, when you don't remember, it becomes a more time consuming process and that makes people cranky.

"They're a little upset sometimes.  How am I going to do this?  I'm driving without a good license. Yeah, they get upset about it," said Vicki Green with the Jenks Tag Agency.

A lot of people wish the state would mail out reminders, but the state says the $400,000 a year price tag is just too expensive, especially in a time of tight budgets.  Plus, much of that money would be wasted because they say about 50% of their mailings come back because people move and don't notify the Department of Public Safety.

Even though state law requires people to notify the department within 10 days of an address change, most don't.

The state decided to email notices because most people keep their email addresses, even when they move and these reminders don't cost taxpayers a dime.

A person with a driver's license or state issued identification card can sign up online and then 45 days before the license or card expires, you'll get an email reminder and then, every four years after that, you'll get another reminder.

If you change your email address, you can sign up again.

Beginning in November, you'll have a 30 day grace period after your license expires, which means you can renew it without having to provide a birth certificate or passport.