Utah DMV’s problems

Rare are the Departments of Motor Vehicles that enjoy a pristine reputation, yet until now, Utah wasn’t too bad in my eyes. 

One year ago, when I had to renew registration on my electric car, I was invited to join the Utah’s road usage charge program which helps pay state road maintenance. Like in other states, Utah roads are maintained by using taxes from gasoline sales. As vehicles become more fuel efficient and the number of electric vehicles grows, the Utah Department of Transportation (UDOT) is changing to a per-mile fee as a way for drivers to pay their portion of roadway operations and maintenance. 

During the 2018 Legislative session, lawmakers instituted an alternative fuel fee to cover a portion of those vehicles’ contribution to building and maintaining our roads. ​This comes in addition to the annual vehicle registration fee assessed on all vehicles in the State​. Utah’s Road Usage Charge provides a choice for owners of alternative fuel vehicles to pay by the mile instead of paying the alternative fuel vehicle fee. The Utah’s Road Usage Charge Program is voluntary for electric vehicle owners.

UDOT had first contracted with Emovis, a Spanish firm that specialized in transportation systems to operate the program. In April, the state changed contractors and went with Etan, a Dallas based company, and promised a seamless transfer to provide a better value (read cheaper). This didn’t work seamlessly at all for me. 

When time to renew my registration came, I couldn’t do it at the rate I was promised. My records were lost in some malfunctioning software. I quickly became a football bouncing from UDOT, Etan and a separate customer service program that bounced me from place to place as they were incapable of solving my situation. 

Eventually, two Etan's ladies, through trial and error, were able to help me after admitting that its software was all screwed up and that I had lost one full day trying to solve the problem. They gave me a bogus name, something like “Go11” as a first name and “Trustees” as a last name because a trust owns my car. 

They really made it work. Another example in life that we get what we pay for in terms of value; “Trust” me!