New York State DMV - College Point — Attraction in New York

This place (the College Point DMV) has always been a big problem. The employees here don’t look to help anyone, they look to turn you away and they will lie to do so. I’m disabled and went there to get disability plates. I noticed immediately that the girl helping me had a problem or is just a negative human being. As I was approaching her after my number was called I could see her rolling her eyes. She was being so mean and negative towards me and I was being nice. Make a long story short she didn’t give me the disability plates that are my right and made 3 different excuses why. She was wrong and I was trying to point it out to her in black and white in the letter that comes from the DMV that she was wrong but she was just making up her own rules as we went along. She didn't want to look at the letter from the DMV that showed the rules but again was making up rules as we went along. I asked for her supervisor but you can’t win with the supervisor either cause the supervisor just took her side and turned me away again not looking at the letter that said in black and white what the rules are to apply for disability plates. I ended up going to the Garden City DMV the next day and immediately it was a different experience. The employee greeted me with a smile, not rolling her eyes as in College Point. The Garden City employee knew the rules and within 20 minutes I had my new plates and new registration. It is absolutely disgusting how these employees at College Point make a disabled persons life even more difficult then what it already is. I told her it’s very hard for me to come back to please look at the rules and not go by whatever she made up but she wouldn't listen. I bet you if I was a family member of hers or friend I would have walked out with my plates. This DMV has always been a problem, it’s actually the worst. They treat you like a criminal and you have no say but need to beg them to do their job. Garden City is night and day a 100x better. I will be writing to consumer affairs of my experience as a disabled person and will even be looking to contact the news about how I was treated. They treated me like a criminal and I should beg them for help. They don’t look to serve the community but look to degrade people and find ways to say know. I wish I could write all the details but it would take to long to do so. I am not going to let this go, I plan to go back and ask for hers and her supervisors name to report them. Let’s see if they give me their names. I’ve been through a lot in my life and recently almost lost my life that left me disabled instead. I’m not asking for any favors but I’m asking to be treated fairly and by the rules that apply, instead of having a young girl that doesn’t know what she’s talking about. The things we’re common logic and written and black and white but instead she just chose to make up her own rules cause maybe she didn’t like how I looked to her. I am disgusted of this place and this place needs to be shut down. Maybe there should be pop inspectors popping up at all DMV’s acting as consumers to see how these employees treat the public. This was a horrible experience that nobody should ever have to go through. I welcome for a high level supervisor that may of read this to reach out to me so I can explain what I went through,...

I went here last month with my family to get our REAL IDs and all four of us were in and out in 3 hours. We had 11:30AM appointments on a weekday and that was the busiest it was during our three hours there (with a line to get in and another one inside to check in). If possible, I suggest trying to get an early morning appointment.

Follow the instructions on the DMV website with the application/documents and your visit should go smoothly.

The worst/longest part is waiting for your number to get called after your picture is taken. If you can figure out your place in the queue because other people are doing the same thing, it will take a lot of stress off. All “ticket numbers” have a prefix for the visit type (LN, WU, LE, etc.) and then a number (e.g. LN00003, LN00004, LN00005 etc. should all be ticket numbers to get an ID). If there aren’t any others ahead of you with the same visit prefix because you’re doing something less common (e.g. out-of-state license exchange; LE00000), you will need to stay vigilant to ensure you hear your number being called.

Some tips for people with upcoming visits for REAL IDs/how my visit generally went:

1. Do not even think about coming here without making an appointment. Security will turn you away at the door and they check for proof of a reservation via print-out or confirmation email. My ID expired a few months ago and I was able to make an appointment under "Get a Non-Driver ID."
2. Print and fill out your application beforehand. They accept applications with fields that have been completed via computer and I bought a second copy filled in via pen just in case. Use the checklist on the DMV website to make sure you have all the proper documents.
3. Check-in via text once you get INSIDE the building. This allows you to skip the check-in line. If you check in while waiting to get inside the building, you may miss your number being called to take your picture. If you don’t have an application or are unsure you have the right one, you’ll have to wait on the check-in line.
4. After check-in, you will get called almost immediately to get your picture taken. They’ll give you a ticket and then you'll have to wait for the application processing part.
5. This wait is the longest part. I had a 1 hr 20 min wait between getting called to get my picture taken and getting called for the application processing part.
6. There are 3 ways to know when you're called: Text message, screens and PA system/overhead announcements. Be extra careful and pay attention to the overhead announcements. DO NOT rely on just the screens- I sometimes heard numbers being called that didn’t appear on the screens at all.
7. From my family’s experience, clerks range from quite friendly to mildly hostile. I paid with credit card and this part went by smoothly. Make sure you verify that all your information is correct- they have you check the details on a screen before everything...

The representative who was supposed to help me exchange my out of state license from Michigan to NY was completely incompetent. I presented 5 different documentations including 3 state IDs (2 from Michigan- old and renewed; 1 from my previous NYS driver's license before moving to Michigan), my SS card, AND my US passport with ALL of them showing the same exact name- first name, middle name, last name. The Asian man told me that it was not enough proof of identification because of my middle name EVEN THOUGH all IDs and passport all showed the same exact name. He then proceeds to tell me that I need to bring another document to show my full name even though I already brought 5 identification documents all WITHIN the DMV guidelines! He gave me 40 minutes to get the document and bring it back to the DMV before the green slip that he gave me becomes invalid. I had to drive back home and back to the DMV, wait in line and he gave me 40 minutes??! This is just completely inconsiderate. I rushed home, grabbed another document, drove back to the DMV, waited again in line for another ticket number. When I get to another counter to present my document, the representative this time then proceeds to tell me that they couldn't verify my Michigan driver's license even though I just renewed it 6 months ago and I even brought my old Michigan driver's license as well before the renewal. They gave me another slip asking me to obtain my driving record from Michigan, which I had to pay money for again even though I had my old and renewed Michigan license to show the original issue date of the year 2020. What other freaking issue are they going to find again??! I came back to the DMV today - College Point and the lady representative at the counter was confused about what the problem was yesterday. She said that all the IDs and US passport I provided showed my full name with no discrepancy and that my Michigan license was able to be verified when she tried it WITHOUT any issues. The 2 representatives yesterday, especially the first man, were completely incompetent. They wasted my entire day and this was the 3rd time I've had to return to the DMV just to exchange my Michigan license even though I was previously a NYS resident. I have a job and I have had to take 3 DAYS OFF WORK JUST TO EXCHANGE MY OUT OF STATE DRIVER'S LICENSE!!! Train your staff BETTER so you don't waste...