Senator Charles J. Fuschillo, Jr. (R-Merrick) announced that the state budget includes funding for major new Department of Motor Vehicle (DMV) customer service initiatives. The initiatives will enable the DMV to become more accessible, easier to use, and customer friendly. 

     “Nearly every driver has had the frustrating experience of waiting at DMV for what seems like forever just to perform a simple transaction. That should be the exception, not the norm. This new funding will enable the DMV to implement aggressive and necessary reforms that will enhance service, reduce wait times, and most importantly, improve the way its customers are treated,” said Senator Fuschillo, Chairman of the Senate’s Transportation Committee.

     According to the DMV, the funding included in the State budget will enable the agency to:

     • Utilize new technology that will allow customers to go online and make a reservation at a State DMV office and then show up at that scheduled time;

     • Allow DMV to hold expanded hours at certain locations, including Saturday hours, to make it easier for the public to access DMV services;

     • Improve call routing and also give customers the option of receiving a call back from a customer service representative instead of waiting on hold. This will help ensure that customers are not waiting on hold for an extended period of time;

     • Expand office services at DMV locations, including the use of floating customer service representatives to answer questions, review paperwork, help expedite customer service, and even use smart tablets to process simple transactions.

     • Continue to develop customer-convenient alternative service methods, including kiosks, additional web transactions, and MyDMV services.

     According to DMV, the reforms aim to reduce the wait times at State DMV offices from more than 60 minutes to 30 minutes or less over the next year. DMV also seeks to achieve 90% customer satisfaction by customers who use a State DMV office.