[CA B.A.R. rant] Govt. employees....

[Turk]

You are done. You lucky dog!!

I called the CHP today to make an appointment for my next to the final stop, to register my car.
I managed to dial 4 different CHP numbers only to be told, they don't do that?

Do WHAT? They don't assign VIN numbers, I should be calling the Salvage people?

Not giving up, I called Sacramento who referred me to the same office I started at.

When called, I was instructed to ask for a VIN Officer. He was not in, and the person who I spoke to told me they are not making appointments except 3-4 weeks out.

Again I was asked what year the car was. Hell, I don't know. It depends on which office you go to. I told them it was being registered under SB-100. for the first time.
Never heard of that, did I know what year? No I didn't.

What year does the VIN say? It doesn't. I don't have a VIN Number that is why I am calling.

We can't help you without a VIN number.

Back to Sacramento, and they insist I must call the CHP office where I live. I protest that the reason I am calling the main number is because the CHP I am being directed at doesn't have a clue what I am talking about.

I mention the fact I was able to register my earlier Cobra at a CHP post 30 miles from my home and they knew what they were doing. Nope can't go back there, you should have never gone there and they should have never done it.

But where I have to go says I can't be issued a VIN number because I don't have a number anywhere on the car. I am given a phone number of an officer to call, after I pick one of the two choices I am given. Pre 1996 or post 1996???

I pick post 96. The number ofcourse is a recording.
"hello, thank you for calling CHP Slavage Operations Office. We can't come to the phone because we are in the yard with salvage.............."

It is understandable with only 500 numbers one can not expect the CHP offices all over the state to be 100 percent familiar with something they may never have done before or they may never do again.

What is the citizen to do? I called the office where I was turned down, and this time I got a real CHP officer who was courteous and willing to help. As much as he did not know anything about it, he encouraged me to come on in the day after tomorrow, they would figure something.

I feel like I am in the twilight zone.

TURK