5,000 driving licences still have not been renewed in Corfu
driving licence
22 Sep 2022
/ 19:02
CORFU. Deputy Regional Governor Kostas Zorbas: “Several licences will be sent to the other Regional Units to be renewed. In 10-15 days, the situation will be back to normal”.
Thousands of Corfu drivers remain without a driving licence and are even waiting since 2021 for the renewal or replacement of their driving licence. There are still around 5,000 driving licences that have not been processed and, thus, people are complaining daily.
The Corfu Driving Licences Department, which is responsible for the renewal and replacement of licences (due to damage or loss), remains understaffed since two employees, who were responsible for these issues left, resulting in the completion process being slowed down.
The one remaining official and the new supervisor are not enough to deal with the large number of applications. As a result, drivers are only given a document with the date of submission of the supporting documents. With this they can move within Corfu, but things become more difficult when they travel outside the island.
"Drivers face a problem when they go outside Corfu, because the control mechanisms, seeing the time that the documents were filed months ago, do not believe them. We had a case where a client was fined by the Igoumenitsa Traffic Police, because the document he had showed that he had filed the supporting documents four months ago," the driving school owner Giorgos Kavvadias told Enimerosi.
They’ll be sent to the other Regions
The Service's understaffing problem is being proved by the large number of pending applications and it is well known to the Ionian Islands Region. Due to this dead end, it was decided to adopt an original solution - the other Ionian Islands Regional Units to take over several of the driving licences.
"We made a request to the Ministry, to which it responded positively and it is giving us the opportunity to give the licences to the other Regional Units and in 10-15 days the situation will be back to normal. At the same time, one more employee will be placed in the Service who will be responsible for this, but they will first have to be trained," the Corfu Deputy Regional Governor Kostas Zorbas told Enimerosi.
Mandatory
However, there are daily complaints to the Service both from citizens who are desperate with the situation and professional drivers. Licence renewal is mandatory for drivers aged 65 and over, professional drivers (every five years) and those with health problems.
According to driving school owners, the renewal of a driving licence takes about 10 days under normal circumstances. However, the understaffing issue creates problems. The Corfu Transport and Communications Department has 10 employees (including the Director), even though three more people are needed in the Driving Licences Department, three people in the Traffic Licences Department and one person in the Secretariat.
The Corfu Driving Licences Department, which is responsible for the renewal and replacement of licences (due to damage or loss), remains understaffed since two employees, who were responsible for these issues left, resulting in the completion process being slowed down.
The one remaining official and the new supervisor are not enough to deal with the large number of applications. As a result, drivers are only given a document with the date of submission of the supporting documents. With this they can move within Corfu, but things become more difficult when they travel outside the island.
"Drivers face a problem when they go outside Corfu, because the control mechanisms, seeing the time that the documents were filed months ago, do not believe them. We had a case where a client was fined by the Igoumenitsa Traffic Police, because the document he had showed that he had filed the supporting documents four months ago," the driving school owner Giorgos Kavvadias told Enimerosi.
They’ll be sent to the other Regions
The Service's understaffing problem is being proved by the large number of pending applications and it is well known to the Ionian Islands Region. Due to this dead end, it was decided to adopt an original solution - the other Ionian Islands Regional Units to take over several of the driving licences.
"We made a request to the Ministry, to which it responded positively and it is giving us the opportunity to give the licences to the other Regional Units and in 10-15 days the situation will be back to normal. At the same time, one more employee will be placed in the Service who will be responsible for this, but they will first have to be trained," the Corfu Deputy Regional Governor Kostas Zorbas told Enimerosi.
Mandatory
However, there are daily complaints to the Service both from citizens who are desperate with the situation and professional drivers. Licence renewal is mandatory for drivers aged 65 and over, professional drivers (every five years) and those with health problems.
According to driving school owners, the renewal of a driving licence takes about 10 days under normal circumstances. However, the understaffing issue creates problems. The Corfu Transport and Communications Department has 10 employees (including the Director), even though three more people are needed in the Driving Licences Department, three people in the Traffic Licences Department and one person in the Secretariat.
