Using Paperless Technology to Modernize the DMV

Tue, 1/2/2018 - 12:56 am by Kirsten Rincon

Full Desk of PaperGoing to the DMV has never been a pleasure for most Americans. There are plenty of reasons why people hate visiting the DMV, with long wait times probably being the main reason. Long lines have always been an issue for DMVs across the country, and waiting for half an hour or more for a service is not uncommon. On top of that, DMV employees are often very impolite and most visitors are not satisfied with their service. Some of the issues the DMV is facing can be solved by moving certain services online, cutting wait times and reducing costs. DMVs in various states have already made several of their services available online, which has helped them become much more efficient.

It’s clear that technology can help modernize the DMV and eliminate its shortcomings, and the Texas DMV, for one, has realized that and has decided to facilitate the procedure for issuing vehicle titles by introducing a paperless vehicle title system. The system is called webDEALER, and it is intended to create electronic vehicle titles, called eTitles. With it, vehicle titles won’t be piling up into huge stacks of paper, and dealers will be able to access an online title database.

This system transfers the fees a car buyer pays, as well as their personal information, directly to the county tax office, and it’s all done electronically. This way, when you buy a vehicle, you won’t have to fill out the paper forms that used to be required by the DMV, resulting in a much quicker and simpler title transfer process. The webDEALER should be especially appreciated by car dealers, who won’t have to go to their local county tax office to process titles anymore, which will help them do their business in a more efficient way. They will only have to submit the information of their customers electronically to the county tax office, which will later transfer it to the DMV.

The webDEALER was first launched in Travis County and Leif Johnson Ford, and Whitney Brewster, the Executive Director of the Texas DMV said that the first vehicle to be processed by the paperless title system was a pick-up truck. Brewster went on to say that Texas residents who already have a vehicle title won’t receive an eTitle, which is intended for newly bought vehicles.

The eTitle provides greater security for vehicle buyers, as it eliminates the risk of losing the paper title or someone else stealing it. Brewster stated that, for now, webDEALER is available to customers that buy new vehicles from franchised dealers, but it should soon expand to used car dealers and private sellers.

In general, technology helps make almost everything work better and more efficiently, and the DMV has to try and take advantage of the seemingly endless possibilities technology provides. If all DMVs were to use some sort of technology to streamline their procedures and offer more online services, they will save a lot of money and will significantly improve customer satisfaction.