WIESBADEN, Germany – To help reduce the heavy customer traffic traditionally associated with vehicle registration during the peak PCS season, those needing to re-register their U.S. Army in Europe and Africa-plated vehicles can do so almost three months prior to their current registration expiration.
The early mailings will allow those with tags expiring in May/June/July to re-register as early as February/March/April, respectively, according to officials with a joint USAREUR-AF, Air Force and Installation Management Command-Europe operational planning team (OPT) seeking to improve the registration process.
“It’s important that we make improvements to the vehicle registration process by this summer,” said Tommy Mize, IMCOM-E Director. “This is a customer-service program that impacts quality of life, so our IMCOM-E team is working hard with our USAREUR-AF partners and the Air Force to streamline operations where we can.”
Mize emphasized the importance of early registration in the spring for those who would normally wait until a summer expiration date as a key factor to lessen the high PCS season demand that created bottlenecks last year.
Renewal notifications were typically mailed out 75 days in advance of expiration, but mailers will go out earlier this year, approximately 90 days prior to a registration expiring, to allow more time for those needing to re-new to plan ahead and make any necessary appointments.
The change is minor but can make a big difference to help alleviate the delays that occurred last year with long wait times, when inbound personnel needing initial vehicle inspections and registrations were adding to the customer base of those in their re-registration window, according to motor vehicle registry officials.
“Renewing as early as possible will be a big help in reducing the queues during the summer months,” added Vic Baez-An, USAREUR-AF Registry of Motor Vehicles Operations Manager at Sembach Kaserne.
Unfortunately, registry data shows that only 10 percent of re-registrations have occurred during the 45-75 day window previously, and 55 percent of customers wait to within 15 days of the registration being due.
“If we can get that 10 percent up to 90 percent or higher, it will make a huge difference this summer in reducing the number of people needing those services,” said Baez-An. “We really need current customers to ‘help us help you’ by renewing as early as possible to avoid that last-minute influx of re-registrations overlapping with newcomer registrations.
Despite the planned early notification mailings, Baez-An also noted that almost half are returned as undeliverable due to mailing addresses not being updated – “even if someone doesn’t receive the courtesy renewal, they can still go and get it done though,” he added.
Early renewal does not change the one- or two-year expiration date, registry officials noted, and could also allow more time to fix any discrepancies if a vehicle fails to pass the required inspection.
The OPT is looking to help reduce the summer workload by increasing the number of inspectors and clerks to meet the anticipated demand surge and by establishing a safety-kit kiosk at inspection facilities. The kiosks would reduce people being turned away for not having items such as first aid kits, warning triangles or safety vests, allowing them to purchase those on site – eliminating second visits.
“We understand we have to make significant improvements to the process, and we are looking at innovative ways to do that,” said COL Chris Danbeck, IMCOM-E deputy director and OPT lead for the cross-functional working group. “Our goal is to ensure a smooth, low-stress experience for our military and civilian workforce as they go through this process, whether it be a renewal or a first-time registration.”
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