I live on Mud Bay. My old pickup truck has advertised my place of residence via a personalized license plate for almost two decades. However, it was only about two years ago that I was able to swap it for a license plate that spells Mud Bay correctly (see photo). That meant dealing with the Washington state Department of Licensing, never an easy task.
As a Christmas present in 2008, my dad offered to pay for a personalized license plate for my truck. At the time “MUD BAY” was taken so I opted for the alternate spelling “MUDDBAY” instead. Almost the real thing, but not quite. Although the truck retired from its role as a daily driver in 2016, I have been paying extra for a personalized plate for it every year.
Fast forward to renewal time in late 2022. Just for fun, I checked the DOL’s database of personalized plates and found that “MUD BAY” was available to anyone who wanted it. I decided to apply, although I joked that it would take a year to get the new license plate. That estimate wasn’t far off.
I filled out the application, included a check for the new personalized license plate, and sent it in. About three months later in March 2023, I received a letter requesting an additional $40. Dutifully, I sent in another check.
On April 8th, I got a refund for the total amount I had paid. There was no explanation, just a refund. At that point I called DOL customer service and was able to talk to a human. The person I spoke to said they were months behind on fulfilling personalized plate requests. He also said that two departments were involved in my case: one that processes applications and one that issues refunds. My take was that the first doesn’t communicate well and the second doesn’t need to. Because the customer service rep couldn’t find any reason for the rejection, he advised me to send in another application if I was still interested.
I applied again a few days later, this time with a check for the correct amount.
In an encouraging development my check was cashed on April 18. But that was it for the next five months.
In September 2023 I called customer service again. I was advised that my request had been approved although the plate was still being worked on. Also, that the DOL was sending me a temporary plate. If you haven’t seen one, temporary plates are made of a flimsy white vinyl material but are designed to stand up to the elements and to last for months. When you are waiting for a permanent license plate, that’s not the news you want to hear.
At that point, I wasn’t sure which license plate applied to my truck’s registration. Was it my “MUDDBAY” plate or the temporary plate or the approved but yet-to-be-made “MUD BAY” plate? Since I rarely drive the truck, I decided to keep using the “MUDDBAY” plate. When the temporary plate arrived in the mail, I didn’t even bother to install it. I just added it to my growing DOL file.
Finally in October, the new “MUD BAY” license plate showed up. In all it took two applications, a dozen or so emails and phone calls, and 10 months of waiting to get it.
I’m just about to renew it again and my plan is to keep “MUD BAY” forever or at least until the truck is eligible for a collector plate in 2029.
Mud Bay Blog 