'You don't have to make [the DMV] any worse': Rude customer berates DMV worker, she gets petty revenge by giving him the worst license plate number

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Ben Weiss • Writer and Editor
May 24, 2023 2:00 PM EDT

No one enjoys being at the dreaded Department of Motor Vehicles, otherwise known as the DMV or the physical manifestation of purgatory. However, the only thing worse you could do as a customer at the DMV is to make the experience more difficult than it needs to be.

 

This thread was posted to Reddit's r/pettyrevenge subreddit by u/grantchart, who explained that one of the few joys on the job was the occasional discovery of a humorous license plate number. When one customer decided to be absolutely dreadful that day, OP got back at him when she came across a humorous license plate number in the queue that the customer clearly wanted. Instead of giving him that satisfaction, she moved that option to the bottom of the screen and gave him a boring number instead. That's what you get when you are condescending to the people who are working to try to make things easier for you.

 

For more stories like this, check out this HOA drama.

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  • 01
    Font - "You don't have to make [the DMV] any worse than it actually is"
    via Martin Lostak
  • 02
    Font - Be a d at the DMV? Bummer that you didn't get the cool license plate you wanted. When I was young, I worked at the DMV in an attempt to crush my soul enough to join the corporate world.
    via u/grantchart
  • 03
    Font - One of the only joys of being in that place was the occasional funny or cool license plate that randomly showed up. Our state had a basic 3+3 pattern: three random letters/numbers, followed by a space to allow the state logo to appear, then three more letters/numbers. Every morning, I'd flip through the stack of plates on my station, looking for things like "JMS BND" or "MTL ICA" (not actual plates- although they're close to a couple I did hand out). We all did. Every time we found a real
    via u/grantchart
  • 04
    Font - One day, a dude made it to the front of the Queue of Misery just as I finished up with a customer. I was about halfway down the line of stations, and yelled the standard "I can help you down here!" at him.
    via u/grantchart
  • 05
    Font - For some unknown reason, this pissed him off. He walked up to the nearest station and yelled back "Why can't you help me down here!" and then spent approximately 3x the amount of time it would have taken to process his registration arguing with me about why I had to help him THERE instead of at my station. Because apparently the long hike was just too much for him. Eventually, for reasons I can't understand myself, I gave up and schlepped on over to where he was standing.
    via u/grantchart
  • 06
    Font - He was a total sourpuss the entire time, too. Couldn't understand why it took me so long to get set up and log in. Every question got a sarcastic response. Like (but probably not actually- this was a while back) "Are you a state resident?" --> "Why the would I be registering a car here if I weren't?" Yeah, I know the DMV is Antechamber, but you don't have to make it any worse than it actually is. Did it make him feel manly to with some random 19 year old girl whose job could have been don
    via u/grantchart
  • 07
    Font - So as I'm filling in the form on that 1970s-era greenscreen terminal, I notice the next license plate on the stack. It's a doozy. For the life of me, I can't remember what it was exactly (there were so many silly ones. they all blend together.) But I do remember that it was cool and almost naughty. He sees it too. He's standing there, staring at it like a kid about to get the biggest lollipop in the candy store.
    via u/grantchart
  • 08
    Font - The petty revenge: So I make the briefest of eye contact, casually move the cool plate to the bottom of the stack, and key in the numbers & letters from the boringly mundane next one. I could almost see the gears turning in his head. Does he complain? If he does, is he going to sound like a total baby because he didn't get the plate he wanted? Am I going to charge him extra for a custom plate if he asks ME for it? But no. He just fumes silently as I finish up.
    via u/grantchart
  • 09
    Font - I don't really remember walking out to his car to verify the VIN, but I like to think I strutted just a little. tl;dr: DMV customer acts like a total to me. I give him a boring random license plate instead of the cool random license plate that was next on the stack of random license plates.
    via u/grantchart
  • 10
    Font - Fast_Fee517 3 hr. ago Well played on your part. Customer acts like an +2. and got a mundane normal plate 123 Reply Share
    via u/grantchart
  • 11
    Font - 65Russty +1.1 hr. ago Absolute boss move to slip that plate from the top to the bottom of the stack. I thought the story was headed in the direction of you helping him at that station but walking back to the station you were logged into to input the data. Ask a question, slowly walk back to your station. Input data, slowly walk back and ask another question. Rinse and repeat until finished.
    via u/grantchart
  • 12
    Font - Witty_Commentator 57 min. ago I thought it was headed in the direction of skipping him with, "No one is at that station... I can help whoever is next!"
    via u/grantchart
  • 13
    Gesture - Just-Another-Poster- 3 hr. ago This reminds me why it's always wise to be nice to who is helping you.
    via u/grantchart
  • 14
    Font - illigal 48 min. ago Lol. This is great. Last time I needed a plate, there was one with a 68 on top. I asked if they were sequential and if so, could I have the next one. The DMV lady saw how excited I was and hooked me up. D69 - niiice!
    via u/grantchart
  • 15
    Rectangle - arlin12 1 hr. ago Queue of Misery!!! Love it!!!
    via u/grantchart

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customer service revenge customers petty revenge reddit thread Reddit entitled people DMV
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