Durham EMT has license suspended after DMV clerical error: 'I cried in the parking lot'

DURHAM, N.C. (WTVD) -- A Durham EMT was concerned about a potential job loss after a clerical error at the DMV meant driving was no longer a legal option.

Kaz Moore has worked as a first responder, driving ambulances and working in emergency medical services for five years.

With the Real ID deadline looming, the Durham native went online months ago to make an appointment to update their ID. The nearest appointment was months later in Lumberton; Moore booked it anyway.

ALSO SEE | As May REAL ID deadline looms, lines across central NC grow

Getting up at 4:30 a.m. and driving two hours away, Moore was told the paperwork was incomplete, with a DMV employee telling Moore they were missing a medical clearance note from a doctor.

Moore had epilepsy as a teenager and had brain surgery to fix the problem, and hasn't had any seizures since. With that medical history, though, Moore is required to have a doctor sign off to be able to drive. Moore was told that despite turning in a note of clearance from the doctor in years past, it never got attached.

Moore quickly called the doctor and had them send the note in.

Moore tried to call and confirm the office had received it, but the call wouldn't go through. Finally, Moore decided to drive back down to Lumberton for a second time, where an employee reportedly said the phones and fax machines were down, which was likely why the note was not received in the first place.

"I definitely cried in the DMV parking lot in Lumberton," Moore told ABC11, adding that lines were so long at that DMV location that people brought camping chairs to make the wait times more bearable.

Two more DMV visits and many phone calls later, the problem still had not been fixed.

Then, on Monday morning, Moore was getting ready to go into work and noticed missed calls from the captain.

"He said to check my email, and you know, I was already in uniform and everything, and it said that I wasn't allowed to drive county vehicles or my personal vehicle for county business," Moore said.

The email stated that Moore's license had been suspended for "Failure to Submit Medical Report," making Moore ineligible to drive at all.

Moore was forced to use up a day of vacation and stay home from work Monday. Moore's wife drove them to the DMV, where they tried to sort the problem out. Moore's supervisors at work even tried to help fix it, but with no luck.

So, Moore's wife reached out to the ABC11 I-Team. We reached out to our contacts at the DMV and explained the problem. Within an hour, we got an email confirmation that the error had been fixed. Moore's license suspension was cleared, and Moore could return to work.

Moore was grateful that the error had been fixed but described the process as "stressful" and expressed concern for others who might not have as many resources to get a problem like this solved.

The DMV has a list of tips if you plan to head there any time soon; you can find that list here.