Why is it that an expired drivers license or other form of identification is no longer valid as a form of identification? How can it be that 2 or 3 days after the expiration date, the piece of identification no longer identifies you?
Logically, because if it’s no longer valid, then it shouldn’t be accepted. Also, because they can be valid for long periods of times, (mine is 4 years), you can change a whole lot in 4 years. Aaaand if you had an older brother or something, and his ID expired, he could pass it off to you so that you could use it illegally since the picture would be of him 4 or more years ago.
There should have been a counterpoint to my “Logically” statement. I don’t know what the law regarding this is, or why they set it up that way. That was just my way to justify current policies.
You might have changed identity since the license was in force. As far as government officials are concerned, you might have been Clark Kent then, but are now Spiderman.
This question has haunted me for a long time. An expired driver’s license, while it may be invalid to allow me to legally drive, still proves who I am just as much as it did the day before it expired. For identification, it should be accepted no matter how old it is. For driving, not so much.
Although I might make an exception for one so old as to not have a recognizable picture of the holder on it. But this problem can occur if the holder grows a beard or has facial surgery after the picture was taken, too.
You might have changed your name during the period the license was in force, too. So what?
And as far as a name change, what has that got to do with identity? You are still the same person even if your name has changed (thru marriage or whatever).
It was mentioned briefly earlier but I believe the reason is that there are now known duplicates of the license and you could give one to someone else. Plenty of people look enough alike that they could pass off ID based on just a tiny picture. Refusing to accept those greatly cuts down on the problems of not just drinking but also things like identity theft.
I always assumed it was because if you didn’t get it renewed, it’s possible that it’s because it was never yours (or authentic) to start with.
And you could lend your original to someone else, too.
What? If it was not authentic, why not make the date more recent? A counterfeiter surely isn’t detered by faking a date.
I think the reason clerks often don’t accept expired driver’s licenses as IDs is one of ignorance. They are so used to checking the date for validity for driving or age that they don’t realize that it has nothing to do with the validity of the person.
And, for age, an expired license is as good as a non-expired one. If I was legally 21 before the expiration date, I surely haven’t gotten younger after it expired.
The reason expired IDs are not acceptable is that the state makes money on license renewals.
That’s exactly why? :rolleyes: No one would ever see the need to renew their license otherwise. Driving works just as well with the old one huh?
Rubbish. What do bars or liquor stores care about states’ revenue?
Hmm…I need a fake ID. In order to make sure I’m always covered, I’ll make sure the dude making it for me makes the expiration date 2082. Yeah, that’ll work.
:rolleyes:
Even a fake ID has to have an expiration date just to keep it from appearing fake.
We all know there are fake IDs out there. If the IDs never expire then the only way fake IDs are removed from circulation is when they are found to be bad.
If you print up a fake ID at home then you need to print a new one. The authorities change the IDs or add some new anti counterfeit measure every so often. So new counterfeit measures must be learned. If IDs never expired this would be useless.
If you have fraudulently obtained on from the government there is another interaction with authorities that could let you be found out.
It might not be much added security but it comes cheaply.
I recently got my license renewed. On my old one, I’m 15 in the photo. Perhaps that has something to do with it? They want an up-to-date photo and that’s one way to do it.
Of course, this hinges on one question: do you get a new photo each time?
They don’t. Until such time as the state passes a law stating that expired IDs are invalid and those accepting them are subject to sanctions. If you owned a liquor store and knew that accepting an expired ID could cost you your livelihood, would you accept an expired ID?
I went in to the Social Security office two weeks ago to get a replacement SS card, which I need to renew my driver’s license. I used my expired DL as ID. I had backup ID in my purse, just in case, but the woman took my expired DL without any comment. I don’t know if she didn’t notice or didn’t care. I also found it funny to use a driver’s license to get a new SS card, which I now need to renew my DL.
The ways of government are very strange.
Because there needs to be some objective, non-controversial way to screen for obviously bad IDs. If I present a 30 year out of date license of someone who might or might not be me to a bouncer, obviously I’m not going to get in. But then where do you draw the line? What if it’s only 2 years out of date and it sorta looks like me? 1 year 3 days? 20 days? 1 hour?
If a bouncer makes it common practise to let someone who’s license is X months overdue in, then people who are X+1 months overdue will complain. If you let them exercise common sense, then people will claim discrimination and cause ill will. Much better to just set a firm cutoff of the exact day the license is due so there can be no grounds for appeal.
QED: Bars care about the state’s revenue because if the state does a bust and finds a single license that’s expired, they can bust the bar and fine them. Thus, the easiest solution for the bar is to just go with the rules of the state.
That’s nonsense. It’s more trouble to check that the license isn’t expired - it’s one more thing you have to look at when examining a license to sell alcohol or tobacco. It’s done because a lot of fake IDs are other people’s expired IDs. That’s the easiest way to get a fake ID - persuade your older sibling to give you their old one when it expires. It’s the oldest trick in the book. Of course you have to check for it.
But if the license ISN’T expired, it still might be fake. If the license IS expired, it doesn’t mean the owner has become younger – remember, we’re trying to verify age, not driving legality. And if the pic isn’t good enough to verify the holder, why put one on the card in the first place?
Interesting. I haven’t had an actual SS card in my possession for at least 40 years, yet have renewed driver’s licenses in several states (sequentially, not all at once!). And I recall my original SS card said on it, “not valid for identification.”
I gather you haven’t had to change employment in the last, oh, 20 years. Or do your new employers ignore the I-9 form? Or do you have a passport?