How to Request Driving History Records Online in Florida?
In Florida, your driving record is also known as Motor Vehicle Record (MVR). It gives essential information about your driving habits and any felony cases you may have had in times past. Your driving record is not only available to you - it is open to the public for reasons such as employment and car insurance. License suspensions, traffic school completion, examination results, crash records, moving and non-moving violations are information your driving records can reveal to you and the public.
Obtaining and Checking Your Driving Records for Free
Obtaining your driving records is a relatively straightforward process. You can apply for it online via swift-tags.com and receive it instantly to your email or at a later time through US mail. Tax collector, driver's license Florida office, or any county clerk that provides the service can also be a source of obtaining your driving records.
Insurance companies and employment agencies, among others, may seek your driving records before committing to you, especially if you will be handling the company's car.
Employers, insurance companies, government agencies, and courts can access your driving records without your consent. This is why it is essential to see what is contained in your driving record and how to clean them up and fix it if need be.
Types of Driving Records in Florida
There are three main types of driving records obtainable in Florida, and they have different duration periods.
- Three-year driving record
- Seven-year driving record
- Complete driving record
Three-Year Driving Record
The information provided in this record are driving restrictions, traffic infractions, license suspension, and car accidents history. The three-year driving records show your driving records for the previous three years. It costs $8 to obtain, and do not record your felonies if you opt to go to traffic school.
Seven-Year Driving Record
The seven-year driving record is similar to the three years but gives a longer record time. It includes everything in the three-year history, with a five-year validity period, and costs $10
Complete Driving Record
Your complete driving record contains everything in the three and seven-year driving record and much more. It also includes cancellations, revocations, and any form of disqualifications on your license, even if it happened 15 years ago and costs $10 to obtain. All your traffic violations are contained here, even if you decide to go to a traffic school.
Sections Contained in Your Driving Record
Your driving record is a compilation of a lot of information; some are confidential, others are not. Here are some of the sections contained in your driving record.
- Personal Information: Your personal information like your name, address, date of birth, and social security number are contained in the driving record. However, when ordered online, the Driver Privacy Protection Act (DPPA) and federal regulations require that this information is omitted for privacy.
- License Type: Your license class, the status of your license, date of issuance, and expiry are revealed in the records. It shows the status of your license, such as suspended, eligible, non-eligible, revoked, or disqualified. It also indicates any identification cards, permits, and Commercial Driver's Licenses you have held in times past.
- State information: Your driving record shows the information about the licenses held in other states and Commercial Driver's License.
- History of issuance: Your history of the license issued and the identification cards are revealed in the records. Dates of renewals and replacements are also displayed in these records.
- Restrictions and endorsement: Restrictions are conditions that should be met before an individual can drive, limiting the driving freedom of a person. A person may be required to drive only an automatic transmission or use a corrective lens while driving. Endorsements are special access that allows you special vehicles like tankers and transporting hazardous materials.
- Violations: Your drivers' record shows information about your violations. It includes the date of violation, location, citation number, and the points it adds to your record. It also shows your history of crashes.
- Drivers' school: After a traffic violation, drivers are required to complete a drivers' course, and these are all present in your record.
How to Clear Your Records
Violations in your driving records typically last for ten years, after which they are moved out of your records. Ten years is a lot of time to get cleared, hence the need for a faster clean-up process. To clear up your driving record fast, you can attend a defensive driving course or Florida driving course. It is essential that you take these courses at a state-certified school. Going through this school can remove points from your driving records, but it only reflects on your three and seven-year driving records. Your violation history remains in your complete driving record.
Why Do You Need to Clean Up Your Florida Driving Record?
Your driving records reveal a lot about your person and your manner of driving. The information is out there, available to the general public. Having your driving record is essential as it helps you identify incorrect information. The inaccurate information can be contributed to your driving record in the case of identity theft. This information can cause you to pay higher insurance fees, miss out on job opportunities or defame you in public. Reviewing your driving record can reveal these lapses and get it fixed up.
Reviewing your driving record can position you well for employment. If you need employment that requires you to be out on the road, a clean driving record can put you in the correct position to access the job. If you have had violations in the past, attending a drivers' school can help you clear out the record. Ensure to clear out these records before interviewing for the job because it positions you for getting the job.
Reviewing your driving record can also reduce the amount of money you pay for car insurance. The cost of car insurance is greatly affected by your driving records. Having a speeding ticket, for example, can increase your cost of insurance by about 31%. A traffic ticket can increase the price by a whopping 82%. Having your records cleaned up can save you all of this money in car insurance.
In conclusion, your driving history is recorded by the Department of Motor Vehicles (DMV) and can be retrieved online or on-site at any time. Employers, insurance companies, courts, and government agencies are at will to obtain your driving records without your consent; however, for other people to access them, they need written permission from you. Reviewing and cleaning your driving records can reduce the cost you pay on insurance, among other benefits.
