Gauteng users speak out on car licence renewal confusion

UPDATE: We've received many user responses and have updated the article. Thank you to all our users for the fantastic feedback.

Cape Town - In November 2015, Wheels24 reported that proof of residence is  required for renewing vehicle and driver licences in South Africa.

The City of Cape Town also reported no vehicle licence-renewal notifications would be sent out during the holiday season.

Sadly, major changes to SA vehicle and driver licensing has caused a huge backlog as administrations battle to cope.

Wheels24 has received dozens of emails from Gauteng-based users sharing their frustrations and experiences at traffic departments.

SA car licence renewal pain: Users respond

Here's what users say:

Dolly Makgalake: I was at Sandton. I waited for four hours. It was really hot as the air-conditioning was not working. We were packed like bananas. There was this young teller who was rude and unprofessional. She was just throwing insults instead of explaining to us. Many left without being helped.

Mandy Kelly: I queued at one of the post offices in my area, for more than an hour, had to fill in forms which takes a while, BUT there wasn’t enough desks or even pens for all of us to use.

In 2015, I received my license in the post so didn’t expect the fill in forms, unfortunately I had no pens on me either. We are all expected to renew our car licence but with the rubbish system people might not even bother renewing their licences.

I was so angry when I left there, thank goodness I don’t have to do this for another year! It's amazing how well SARS is run but we all know why that is!

Change@Global: Has anyone calculated the impact on productivity for a four-hour wait in a queue multiplied by every citizen that drives a car? And the effect this has on our economy?

Andy: Two of my cars had licenses expiring end Jan 2016. I followed the (no renewal form) process and renewed both licenses during January. The problem is that both of the new licenses now expire end December 2016 instead of January 2017 that I expected. So I paid for 12 months but only received 11 months.

Unfortunately, I only picked this up later and was not returning to those queues!

Willem Schipper: I had all my paper work ready to go and renew my licence. I arrived at the Blue Valley post office in the Reeds, Centurion. When it was my turn they told me they are out of paper and had ordered more.

I drove to the next post office in Eco Boulevard in Higveld, Centurion. When it was my turn they told me the printer cartridge is faulty and that they could not print. The person behind the counter said it is not her problem when I asked why they don't have back-up printer cartridges.

I had to go to Highveld post office where I was assisted.

Jacques Botha: I stood in line for four and a half hours in the Barberton Licence office. No air-conditioning, no fan and it was 30-degrees outside...just to have my photo taken as I already did the eye test.

We must have been at least 30 people waiting for one person to perform eye tests. Halfway through she decides to take her lunch break forcing all of us to stand and wait for her to get back. It's ridiculous.

Something has to be done to these officers so that the process can be sped up.

Illegal AARTO penalties have ensured many people just did not bother to licence their vehicles. Tax revolt. https://t.co/ng36KlEOAR

— Toni G (@toni_gon) February 2, 2016

Johann Terblanche: In Pretoria many Post Offices are 'offline'. Garsfontein Post Office has a unique excuse - they have run out of paper. Eventually Parkview Post Office could assist. People were lining-up outside the doors!

The Post Office cannot make copies of original proof of address and ID documents, so after two hours in the queue I was sent to the Postnet outside the shopping centre to make photostats. Will try again another day.

It seems like bureaucracy has gone mad. The stupidity of the matter is government already has all the necessary information at Home Affairs, SARS and/or the Electoral Commission. Where do all the copies go? Are the Gupta's selling filing cabinets?

Norma Mogale: I waited more than six hours to renew my drivers license at Waltoo, Pretoria on the 11 January 2016. It was the worst time. Apparently Waltoo is the only traffic department that does PDP in Gaureng.

More than sick hours but still did not renew my license, I had to go to Centurion the following day but workers were on strike they opened at 11am. I was there from 7am.

Auriel Petersen:Let me start by saying...this is my second car I own and I have never, ever received a renewal licence in the post. I always need to fill out the forms and every year I check the address (which is correct) but still nothing #Pathetic

While renewing in December, one teller requested proof of residency & the other did not. How are we supposed to know what to do if the tellers themselves don't know?

Let me not even comment on the 'no-airconditioning', 'no space to queue' 'always-on-a-break tellers'

Estelle Gerber: I stood in along row at Gezina Post Office in Pretoria for two and a half hours to renew my car license.

Eventually when helped, I was told my proof of residence (a letter regarding our home bond in both mine and my husband's name plus the water and lights account in my husbands name) was not acceptable. I was forced to go to the police station for an affidavit to say that I am married to my husband and we live together at our address!

How frustrating to stay on the right side of the law!

Ofentse Mogale: It's bad trust me. No communication that you must bring proof of residence, forms are not available. When you print at an Internet cafe, forms are readily available. The Internet cafe next door to the post office knows that clients are coming for printouts.

Read: SA car licence renewal confusion - 5 questions answered

Riaan Breedt: Parliament is wasting money on these stupid regulations. We citizens are having enough problems with the incompetence of people at licensing departments.

I've heard a lot of people complaining of the services of the license department  that took a whole day just to get their license and now they want to make more problems for us citizens that have enough of wasting time and money just so that we can renew, apply for a drivers /learner's license or just to renew license disc.

They are clearly abusing tax-payer money.

David Bawden: Up here in Gauteng the licence offices are still treating their captive audience (read: customers) as if we were dirt beneath their feet. Hey licence clerks, we pay your salaries remember?

@Wheels24 @FatalMoves
Continued punishment of honesty while dishonesty goes unchecked.

— MPDZA (@mpdjhb) February 2, 2016

Gilbert Strauss: I’ve just read the bit about people’s frustrations when trying to renew their vehicle licence. I’ve personally been doing mine online for the past six years.

Now I just wonder whether that convenient option has been closed off, or whether the public in general is aware that this can be done electronically without any hassle.

You only have to phone the traffic department (once you receive your reminder) to get a reference number for the EFT, and the disc is usually in the post a week later – that is, assuming the post office is functioning properly.

Deon Louw: I had no problem in getting my licence online. It takes a few days more than usual but got it delivered on time. Many people forget that we get 21 days grace period after the licence expires before we get to pay a penalty.

Brian Zondagh: No hassles in our area suggest putting address renewal form on the net - had to fill in two forms - private & company - will speed up process.