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Reporting

(Reporting "At-risk" Drivers to the Department of Motor Vehicles)

Important Information About Reporting

When someone is concerned about a driver's safety, they may wish to consult with Help Network Members included at the beginning of this section. First, it is important to decide if a problem exists. Caregivers are encouraged to complete the Driving Safety and Medical & Behavioral Checklists included in the "When You Are Concerned" book. Additional steps are outlined in that handbook. One way to get an objective opinion about someone's driving is to consult a driver evaluation and rehabilitation program or a driving school. See Evaluation Section of this Help Network Manual.

If someone is not driving safely, the next step is to find out if the problem is correctable: can the driver be helped to drive safely? Learning new skills, modifying health factors, changing the car or the circumstances of driving are possibilities.

On the other hand, if the driver cannot or will not improve their driving and is unwilling, despite other efforts, to step away from the wheel, a caregiver may consider writing a Letter of Concern to the New York State Department of Motor Vehicles. The procedures for the Testing & Investigation Unit are included in this section as well as the procedure for writing a Letter of Concern requesting a driver re-examination by the New York State Department of Motor Vehicles. A link to the form the public may use for writing to DMV is included above. All sections must be completed, and the form must be signed and notarized. Providing specific driving information (dates, times, observations) is most helpful. To begin the process sooner, when the driver lives in the counties of Western New York, the form may be mailed to:

NYS Department of Motor Vehicles
T & I Unit
295 Main St, Suite 394
Buffalo NY 14203

In regard to privacy, according to the NYS DMV web site, "If a person uses the Freedom of Information Law to request a copy of the form that you filed, the DMV does not disclose your name or other information that identifies you. If the person who sends the report is a person who is in a position of authority, (for example, a physician or a police officer) the DMV does disclose the name of the person who sent the report." The Help Network would advise someone who wants to remain anonymous, to write on the form:

"Please do not share my name. I want to remain anonymous."

Police Officers in New York State have a special form, DS-5, available to law enforcement by contacting the NYS DMV warehouse at (518) 861-6899; questions about when to use the DS-5 form may be directed to Driver Improvement Bureau at (518) 474-0774.

Physicians use a special form, DS-6, available on-line at http://www.nydmv.state.ny.us/forms.htm#ds6. A physician consultant to DMV reviews physician letters to DMV requesting either suspension or reinstatement of a driver's license.

At the present time, the only writers who will be notified about the results of DMV action are police officers who report.

This page was last modified on: Wednesday, September 26, 2007 at 3:27:49 PM