Ordering MVRs in Pennsylvania
One of our non-profit customers recently called and asked basically "how can we check Motor Vehicle Records (Driving Records) on volunteers or employees"?
That's a great question and I'm certain that many of our clients will benefit from this post. We don't claim to be experts on PA Motor Vehicle law, but, after all, we do order MVRs all the time (or our insurance companies certainly do).
First of all - MVRs are considered public records, but according to PennDot they are still confidential and restricted information and aren't subject to laws like the Freedom of Information Act. As a result, Individuals have a right to order their own Driving Record from the State, but other parties must have the permission of the individual to obtain them and there are only a limited number of reasons that the Commonwealth will release them. Insurance companies are permitted to order MVRs, but they cannot divulge the information on them to outside parties like employers.
Second - PennDot has a form that must be completed by the Driver granting that permission. At the time of writing this, the form was called a DL-503 and a copy can be found online at https://www.pa.gov/content/dam/copapwp-pagov/en/penndot/documents/public/dvspubsforms/bdl/bdl-form/dl-503.pdf - that form also shows the rules for ordering and the permitted uses of the information. The MVR fee is $10 and I understand that 7/1/18 the fee will increase to $12. The fee applies whether they locate a record or not.
Finally - while customarily people order MVRs by mail, PennDot now has an on-line service for individuals to order their own MVRs. I read something indicating that Accidents and Violations show up on this record, but not the points associated with the violation(s). That service can be found at https://appsca.pwp.pa.gov/idr and the page says that the service is provided by www.pa.gov - there is also a statement at the bottom that indicates that you are ordering your own driver information or have written authorization from the driver record holder to access the requested information . It seems to follow that the permission granted on the DL-503 would meet this criteria.
I hope that this is helpful information. Whether the individual gets their own MVR information or an employer gets it within the scope of the rules on the DL-503; keep in mind that either way this is private and confidential information that can not be used for any other purpose and the information should be treated accordingly.