The Ongoing Vehicle Saga

As I mentioned in an earlier post I had the paperwork to clear up the insurance violation on Danielle's car, but they wouldn't take it from me so I needed to get the police to fax the papers directly to the MVA. Sounded easy enough.

I spoke to the officer that handled D's totaled car on Tuesday. He didn't think faxing the papers to the MVA was a good idea (despite the MVA telling me that's what I should have done). He injected a few additional complications that I won't bore you with, but which led to me having to involve Danielle in the process.

On Wednesday she spoke to him and got an earful about ignoring his letters and not properly following through to avoid all of this in the first place. He told her that he was doing this merely to help me. They overcame the complications that he had brought up on Tuesday and he decided that he would write a letter on police letterhead with a live signature for us to hand carry to the MVA. Danielle agreed to get the letter. She called me Wednesday night to say that he had left a message for her that it was ready, but that she had been out and didn't get his message. So she would get it Thursday morning and bring it to me so I could deal with the MVA since she had to work at 12:30.

While expecting a call from Danielle to say that she was on her way with the letter I got a call from the police officer. "Why haven't you picked this letter up that I did for you yesterday?" He was ticked off. Had I known it was there, I could have gotten it myself Wednesday. So I told him that I would be right over to get it. It was sealed in an envelope so I didn't know exactly what was in it, but headed straight to the MVA to take care of this once and for all, or so I thought.

The lady in the MVA takes the letter, opens it and starts working away on her PC to change dates, get over ride codes and tells me I owe $1100! I asked to see the letter that he had written and no where did he put the date of the accident when the car was off the road, only the date the car was scrapped. So I show her the other papers, the ones he wouldn't fax and she says, "Oh, just have him fax those and I'll fix it" AAAAGGGHHHHHH!!

(Side note - I'm sure this is exactly how all those borrowers felt during the loan process on the files that I underwrote, processed or originated back in my mortgage days. I'm so glad I'm no longer in an occupation that inflicts this kind of torture on people. I understand its purpose, but getting things from person A to satisfy person C when you are person B is a royal pain when A and C have their own ideas about what the other should do and why.)

So he and I played phone tag for the rest of the day and by late afternoon he had faxed something, to somewhere, but I'm not exactly sure what he had sent or to which number. He was obviously annoyed that this was dragging on and so was I, so I decided to follow up with the MVA this morning before I bothered him any further.

It took several phone calls, but I am happy to report that the automated system now lists this case as closed and with NO fines. YIPPEE!

I left a grateful message on the officer's voice mail and hope to not have to deal with the MVA or the local police for a long long time.

Although I do have to be in court in New Jersey at 9:15 on Monday morning to face the music up there. I had an idea that I'm hoping will pan out though. I've called and emailed the officer that pulled me over who said that I wouldn't have to return and am hoping that he may be able to pull some strings to avoid the trip. I'm ready to go though and will get to have lunch with Sara (who I met at the Youth Forum) if I do end up going, so there is a silver lining.