Driving with expired licences in South Africa. “Pull over,” commands the stoic cop during a routine traffic inspection. Traffic is heavy. Therefore, you are in this quagmire for an hour already. “Why the heck run an inspection campaign during peak traffic?” you said to yourself 30 minutes earlier.
But now your mind is on something else. “Damn this Covid-19 pandemic“, you curse. “My vehicle and driver’s licences have both expired”. As a result, you ponder on the legal implications.
As you pull over, you fling forward with great force. Your head hits the hard steering wheel. Ouch! Whiplash. A ginormous Ford Ranger rammed into you. You now have a new and graver concern. “What are the insurance consequences of driving with expired licences in South Africa?” This articles gives answers.
What’s the law regarding expired vehicle licences?
Your vehicle licence must renew annually. If you do not renew within a 21-day grace period after expiry, a penalty will apply. It does not matter whether the expiration occurred prior or during lock-down, penalties will apply.
“What is the penalty for late car licence renewal in South Africa?”
Motorists who have not renewed their expired licence will pay about 10% penalty fees for each month. Traffic officials could also hand out fines up to R1000 for an expired vehicle licence disc.
“How much is my motor vehicle licence fee?”
Your fee is based on the weight and type of the vehicle. You can get a good estimate of the fee schedule from this website.
“What is the purpose of the vehicle licence fee?”
Municipalities depend on it to fund the following:
- Build, upgrade and maintain the provincially-owned road network.
- To help fund the maintenance of their more strategic roads.
- Continue to reduce the maintenance backlog, which has been decreased by over 16% over the last 7 years.
What documents are required to renew my motor vehicle licence?
Documents needed to renew is enlisted on www.gov.za:
- Is your vehicle used for public transport or a heavy load motor vehicle? Obtain a roadworthiness certificate.
- Go to your nearest registering authority or post office that issue motor vehicle licences. Take the following:
- Your identity document
- Proof of residential address e.g. utility account. An affidavit to declares you live at the address, if no proof of residence.
- If you stay at an informal settlement, you must bring a letter with an official date stamp from the ward Councillor confirming your residential address
- Motor vehicle licence renewal notice (MVL2). If you did not receive a renewal notice, complete form ALV (Application for Licensing of Motor Vehicle)
- For a vehicle registered in an organisation or company’s name, take the following:
- Business certificate of the organisation or company
- Identity document of proxy
- Letter of proxy
- Motor vehicle licence renewal notice (MVL2). If you did not receive a renewal notice, complete an Application for Licensing of Motor Vehicle form (ALV)
What’s the car insurance implications when you meet an accident with an expired vehicle licence?
Here is where it gets tricky. Whether your insurer rejects the claim or not depends on the fine print on the insurance contract. “What contract?” Exactly. Remember, your policy schedule is not your full contractual agreement with your insurer. There are add-ons to this that you have not seen. Add-ons that your financial adviser himself probably does not know about. The fine print you never knew existed. As a result, you are exposed to a claim being rejected.
To protect yourself, you need to firstly, alert your insurer or financial planner in writing that your licence has expired. Secondly, send proof that you have made an attempt to get it renewed. This could be proof of payment etc. You need to show that you made an effort. Selfies of standing in long queues do not count :).
Lastly, enroll the services of a Certified Financial Planner® (CFP®). A CFP® is someone who meets the golden standard as a financial advisor. They have the capability of understanding these add-ons and thus protects you.
Is your financial adviser a CFP®? No? Let us assign one to you. Send an email to [email protected] as well as your request on the subject line.
What’s the law regarding expired driver’s licences?
Your driver’s licence expires every 5 years. Many South Africans do not know this. You will not receive a reminder that it is going to expire. If your driver’s licence expired during the lockdown due to the pandemic, then a grace period applies. The minister of transport has extended the grace period to renew expired driving licences until August 31 2021, due to bottlenecks caused by the Covid-19 lockdown.
If you live in Gauteng you can renew your driver’s licence online. The rest of us must visit a local licensing office. You need to go early as the queues are very long. If you live in Durban, you can book your appointment at Verulam office by calling 031 322 1853 or 031 322 1771. I had to try both these numbers at least 5 times a day for 4 days before someone answered. I got an appointment for 8am on a Sunday morning. So be prepared. You can also email at [email protected]. I received a polite response to this email.
You will need to take along with you:
- ID document
- Copy of an eye test (not older than 3 months), if you wear tested glasses
- Proof of address
- 4 Passport sized photographs (confirm with the licencing office if needed)
- If you stay at an informal settlement, you must bring a letter with an official date stamp from the ward Councillor confirming your residential address
- Prescribed application fee (phone your licencing office to find this out)
There is a lot of fuss about the necessity of a 5 year renewal. Some groups believe that this should be extended to 10 years because 5 years is too soon.
What’s the car insurance implications when you meet an accident with an expired driver’s licence?
Yes…we go into the same rabbit hole. Verbatim.
Whether your insurer rejects the claim or not depends on the fine print on the insurance contract. “What contract?” Exactly. Remember, your policy schedule is not your full contractual agreement with your insurer. There are add-ons to this that you have not seen. Add-ons that your financial adviser himself probably does not know about. The fine print you never knew existed. As a result, you are exposed to a claim being rejected.
To protect yourself, you need to firstly, alert your insurer or financial planner in writing that your licence has expired. Secondly, send proof that you have made an attempt to get it renewed. This could be proof of payment etc. You need to show that you made an effort. Selfies of standing in long queues do not count :).
Lastly, enroll the services of a Certified Financial Planner® (CFP®). A CFP® is someone who meets the golden standard as a financial advisor. They have the capability of understanding these add-ons and thus protects you.
Is your financial adviser a CFP®? No? Let us assign one to you. Send an email to [email protected] as well as your request on the subject line.
Final remarks on driving with expired licences
In conclusion, insurance is the necessary evil for many of us. Driving with expired licences can be a nightmare. You need to know the fine print of insurance contracts before you enter into them, or this will lead to a nasty surprise. Claims will be repudiated (rejected). To protect yourself you need an expert by your side.
A Certified Financial Planner® (CFP®), like myself, is scarce due to high demand. You better call soon as my diary fills up quickly too. [email protected].
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