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© St. Petersburg Times, published June 22, 2002
State officials are offering a new free service to Floridians who would like to check a driver's license online.
The Department of Highway Safety and Motor Vehicles will provide up-to-date information on licenses at www.hsmv.state.fl.us. Drivers, insurance companies, rental car companies, employers and others who want to know whether a license is valid can now check 24 hours a day, seven days a week.
State records have long been available for public inspection, but most people had to call long distance or await return mail to get a response.
A $15,000 investment to put the system on the Web is expected to save state officials about $1-million a year in personnel expenses incurred handling more than 16,000 calls a week.
License problems are common among Florida drivers. Last year the state suspended 1.2-million licenses, revoked 84,279 and canceled 15,188 others. Some drivers don't know they are driving with a suspended license until they are stopped by police. The new system will let individuals check the status of their own license as well as others.