Driving in Western Australia

[Colsie]

3 hours ago, GeoffH said:

Australia is a Federation of states (former British colonies and overseas territories) that voted before 1901 (when the Commonwealth was formed) to join together as a country.  New Zealand and Western Australia were split on the issue unlike the eastern states which had a clear majority in favor.

From memory (long time since school) Western Australia voted about 51% in favor of joining and New Zealand voted about 49% in favor of joining which is why WA is part of Ozzie and New Zealand isn't.

(sorry for the slightly off topic post)

Did you vote GeoffH?  😁

[Jollygoodfellow]

On 12/18/2022 at 9:44 AM, Colsie said:

Unfortunately its expired by more than 5yrs and I have been told by several experience staff at the Department of Transport that I will have to reapply for a licence and this involves both a theory and practical test.

Yep their website says,

"If your licence has expired by more than 5 years you will need to reapply for your driver’s licence."

https://www.transport.wa.gov.au/licensing/renew-my-drivers-licence-standard.asp

[Dave Hounddriver]

On 12/17/2022 at 5:44 PM, Colsie said:

If I was a tourist or here on a temporary visa, then yes

No problem.  Let your wife/gf drive.  When she gets in an accident, tell them:  "Its YOUR bloody rules.  Deal with it"

Edited December 19, 2022 by Dave Hounddriver

[Colsie]

2 hours ago, Dave Hounddriver said:

No problem.  Let your wife/gf drive.  When she gets in an accident, tell them:  "Its YOUR bloody rules.  Deal with it"

The dead don't speak ⚰️

[GeoffH]

4 hours ago, Colsie said:

The dead don't speak ⚰️

Which sadly is why you sometimes see videos of people (mostly in poorer countries) hitting somebody... then going back and doing it again (to make sure they're dead).

Occasionally they've been caught on video but my guess is more get away with it than don't 

Edited December 20, 2022 by GeoffH

[hk blues]

1 hour ago, GeoffH said:

Which sadly is why you sometimes see videos of people (mostly in poorer countries) hitting somebody... then going back and doing it again (to make sure they're dead).

Occasionally they've been caught on video but my guess is more get away with it than don't 

Was also often reported such incidents in China (not always accurately) as it is cheaper to pay for the funeral than the medical bills.  

[Colsie]

18 hours ago, Jollygoodfellow said:

Yep their website says,

"If your licence has expired by more than 5 years you will need to reapply for your driver’s licence."

https://www.transport.wa.gov.au/licensing/renew-my-drivers-licence-standard.asp

If I do the test and fail it my son would get some mileage out of it...also, its probably going to take to long, so I don't think I'll be able to hire a car while I'm here. 

[BrettGC]

48 minutes ago, Colsie said:

If I do the test and fail it my son would get some mileage out of it...also, its probably going to take to long, so I don't think I'll be able to hire a car while I'm here. 

Be interesting to see if they insisted you did the 50 hours or so of logged driving with a licenced driver before you could do the practical test.  

[Colsie]

3 hours ago, BrettGC said:

Be interesting to see if they insisted you did the 50 hours or so of logged driving with a licenced driver before you could do the practical test.  

When I go to the license centre if they say I've not renewed my license within 5yrs of expiring I'm going to tell them it wasn't possible to come home during covid and see if I can get some dispensation... The license has expired 5yrs in June 2021 and since early 2020 the government wouldn't let me travel (stuck here on tourist visa 😂) and only in the last 6 months have they opened up and allowed me to come home. (I'm the victim and unfairly penalised lol) 

Worth a try... Watch this space 

 

Edited December 20, 2022 by Colsie

[Colsie]

On 12/20/2022 at 4:59 PM, BrettGC said:

Be interesting to see if they insisted you did the 50 hours or so of logged driving with a licenced driver before you could do the practical test.  

The good news is, no 50 hours logged driving. 

My argument that it wasn't possible to renew my license within the 5yrs because covid prevented travel to Australia fell flat when I spoke to the supervisor. 

The supervisor informed me that it was possible to renew my licence online while overseas during covid and indeed many people had done so. My premise that I had to have a residential address within Australia to renew my WA driving license was false. 

Therefore during my vacation it is almost impossible for me to drive here because:

1. I'm not allowed to drive on my valid Philippine driving licence because I'm here as an Australian citizen. 

2. Because I didn't renew my driving license within 5yrs of it expiring. If I wish to get a new license I have to do a theory and practical test. 

Theory $20.40

Practical $126.10

The earliest practical available slot was April 2023 and I leave here mid January 2023

3. I wasn't allowed to convert my valid Philippine license to Australian. 

So if there are any other expats reading this, I hope they can benefit from the info, them's the rules for WA. 

Edited December 22, 2022 by Colsie