BMV Glitches Again Knock Out Certain Services

INDIANAPOLIS -- The Bureau of Motor Vehicles is having more difficulty with its new, problem-plagued $32 million computer system.

The agency's self-service terminals, which had been reactivated over the weekend after weeks of unavailability, were deactivated again this week after officials determined they were making too many errors.

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Video: BMV Glitches Again Knock Out Certain Services

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BMV officials said Tuesday they couldn't estimate when the self-service machines might be operable again.

"Obviously we want to have the terminals open as soon as possible, but at the same time we want to make them operational and effective," BMV spokesman Greg Cook said.

The deactivation came at a bad time for Dan Nixon, a Carmel resident whose vehicle registration expired at midnight Monday. License branches are closed on Monday, but Nixon thought he would go to a self-service terminal that day because the BMV's Web site said they were working.

Nixon said he left work early and spent three hours driving to self-service terminals, not knowing that all of them weren't working.

"Per their Web site, I ... drove to the Virginia Street store. Not working. Went to the Statehouse, per their Web site. Not working," Nixon said. "At the Statehouse I was told by one the receptionists that, 'Well, we hear that the Speedway version is up and running.' It wasn't up and running, either."

The self-service machines were among several BMV offerings that had problems when the agency switched to a new computer system on July 5. The switch left BMV workers unable to make some transactions for days, angering customers.