DRIVER'S LICENSE - A standard class "A" driver's license for
motorcycles or automobiles is $34.00. There are seven Department of
Motor Vehicle (DMV) locations in the San Diego area.
To
operate a motorcycle, a special license endorsement is
required. Contact the DMV for more information. Call (800)
777-0133 for the DMV nearest to you.
HOW TO APPLY FOR A
PROVISIONAL PERMIT IF YOU ARE UNDER 18 - If you are under 18 you will need the
following:
*Be at least 15 , but under 18 years
of age
*Visit a DMV office (make an appointment for
faster service)
*Complete the application form DL
44 (An original DL 44 form must be submitted. Copies obtained by xeroxing,
faxing, or other methods will not be accepted.)
*Have your parents' or guardians' signatures on the application form DL 44
*Give a thumb print
*Have your picture taken
*Provide your social
security number. It will be verified with the Social Security Administration
while you are in the office.
*Verify your birth
date and legal presence
*Provide your true full
name
*Submit the proper form(s) for driver
education and/or driver training classes (See below for details.)
*Pay the $24 application fee (This fee entitles you
to three exams of any type within the 12-month period and pays for both the
instruction permit and the driver license. If all requirements are not met
within the 12-month period, the application becomes void and all steps must be
completed again.)
*Pass a vision exam
*Pass a traffic laws and sign test. There are 46
questions on the test. A passing score is at least 39 correct answers. You have
three chances to pass the test. If you fail, you must wait 7 days before taking
it again.
Note: To allow you sufficient time for testing DMV will not be
administering written or audio exams after 4:30 p.m.
If you are 15 to
17 years of age, you will need to provide proof that
you:
*Completed driver education (Form DL 387 or
OL 237) and are taking driver training (DL 392 or OL 392)
OR
*Completed driver education and driver
training (DL 387, DL 388, DL 388A, OL 237, or OL 238).
OR
*Are enrolled and participating in an
approved integrated driver education/driver training program (DL 400).
If you are over 17 but under 18 years of age, you may get your permit
without the driver education and driver training certificates however, you will
not be able to take the driving test until you turn 18.
Once you pass
your written test, you will be issued a provisional permit.
A parent,
guardian, spouse or adult 25 years of age or older, who has a valid driver's
license, must be with you when you drive. He or she must sit in a position close
enough to take control of the vehicle, if necessary. It is illegal for you to
drive alone at any time.
Before being eligible to take your driving test
you must:
*Be 16 years old
AND
*Have held your
permit for a minimum of six months
AND
*Have completed driver education
AND
*Have completed
6 hours of professional driver training
AND
*Have completed 50 hours of practice with an
adult 25 years or older. The adult must have a valid driver's license and
certify to the 50 hours of practice. At least 10 of the 50 hours must have been
done at night.
You will be asked to show that you are properly insured
before the driving test begins or the driving test will be postponed.
After you pass your driving test you will be issued an interim license
valid for 60 days until you receive your new photo license in the mail. Check
your address before you leave DMV and tell the DMV representative if you have
moved or if your address is incorrect. If you have not received your license
after 60 days, call 1-800-777-0133 to check on the status. Have your interim
license with you to provide information when requested.
If you fail your
driving test, you must wait two weeks before you can take the test again. You
have three chances to pass.
If driver education and driver training were
taken in a state other than California, DMV will accept either a To Secondary
Schools Other Than California Schools form DL 33 completed by the out-of state
school, or a letter on the out-of state school's stationery signed by a school
official stating that the courses are equivalent to California's requirements.
Instructional permits issued by another state are not acceptable
proof
INSURANCE - Insurance is a legal requirement for both motorcycles
and automobiles in the state of California and on military
installations. California requires that drivers and vehicle owners
carry the following minimum monetary limits:
*$15,000 for injury or death of 1 person per accident
*$30,000 for injury or death of 2 or more
persons per accident
*$5,000 for property
damage per accident
Evidence of financial responsibility must be carried
at all times in the vehicle. Most Californians maintain financial responsibility
through insurance companies, which provide the policy holder with an
identification card as evidence of coverage. The card must state the insurance
company's name and address, the period of coverage and policy number. Persons
operating a vehicle in this state who are unlicensed or have an invalid
California or out-of-state driver license are subject to the same financial
responsibility laws as valid California licensed drivers.
LICENSE PLATES
- Out of state license plates will generally be valid until their expiration
date. The California DMV has a special form to be filled out by the
service member to receive a military rate on the basic annual registration and
vehicle fee. The three-state rule applies in California - a person
can not be a resident in one state, have a drivers license in another, and have
his/her car registered in another. IF YOU ARE GOING TO REGISTER YOUR
CAR IN CALIFORNIA, YOU MAY HAVE TO PAY AN ADDITIONAL TRANSPORTATION FEE OF $300
AND SOME VEHICLES MUST BE FITTED WITH EMISSION CONTROL
DEVICES.
MOTORCYCLE HELMETS
(CVC 27803)
All motorcycle riders must
wear properly fitted safety helmets which conform to federal safety standards
and are so labeled. Driver and passenger may be cited.
SAFETY
BELTS
(CVC 27315)
Drivers of private passenger vehicles (including house
cars) and light trucks are required to wear and to have their passengers
restrained by safety belts.
Passengers 16 and over, as well
as the driver, will be cited if they are not wearing safety
belts. Owners of private passenger vehicles must maintain safety
belts in good working order.
The fine for the first offense
is $20 and $50 for subsequent offenses.
Vehicles designed for
more than 10 occupants, including school buses; taxi drivers on city streets;
rear seats of taxis, limousines, and emergency vehicles; newspaper delivery
persons; and rural postal carriers are all exceptions to the safety belt vehicle
code.
CHILD RESTRAINT SYSTEMS
(CVC 27360-27365)
Drivers
transporting children in a motor vehicle are required to provide and properly
use a child restraint system (a crash-tested safety seat, harness, or bed) which
meets federal safety standards. Children must ride in these
restraints until they are either six years of age or older OR weighs 60 pounds
or more.
The fine for the first offense is $100 unless the defendant
proves economic disadvantage; the court then refers the defendant to a community
education program that includes, but is not limited to, education on the proper
installation and use of a child passenger restraint system for children of all
ages, and provides certification to the court of completion of that program. No
part of the fine, which is $250, may be waived for the second
offense.
Physical unfitness, medical condition, or size may
be cause for exception, as determined by the court. Another exception
is in an emergency vehicle in a case of an emergency, if there is no safety belt
available, the child is to be secured with a vehicle safety
belt.
A Police Officer may stop the car to cite the driver or
parent if the officer does not see the shoulder harness extended, or, if a child
appears to be seated too low in a vehicle. The fine for this
violation can be as high as $270.
Car rental agencies are
required to provide safety seats for rent by customers on
request. The seats must be in good, safe conditions, with no missing
parts, and less than five years old. Retailers and distributors may
not sell car seats that do not conform to federal
standards. Hospitals must provide and discuss information on the law,
at the time of discharge or before, for patients less than six years old or
weighing less than 60 pounds.
BICYCLE HELMETS
(CVC 21212,
21204)
A person under 18 years of age shall not operate a bicycle, a
nonmotorized scooter, or a skateboard, nor shall they wear in-line or roller
skates, nor ride upon a bicycle, a nonmotorized scooter, or a skateboard as a
passenger, upon a street, bikeway, or any other public bicycle path or trail
unless that person is wearing a properly fitted and fastened bicycle helmet that
meets the standards of either the American Society for Testing and Materials
(ASTM) or the United States Consumer Product Safety Commission (CPSC), or
standards subsequently established by those entities. This requirement also
applies to a person who rides upon a bicycle while in a restraining seat that is
attached to the bicycle or in a trailer towed by the bicycle.
The maximum
fine for violation of this vehicle code is $25.