Saving Your Oklahoma Driver’s License

In Oklahoma, the Department of Public Safety handles all driver’s license issues. If you are arrested for DUI (driving under the influence of alcohol or drugs) or APC (actual physical control) and you refuse to take a chemical test or take a chemical test and have a BAC of .08 or higher, the officer will confiscate your driver’s license.

The officer will provide you an Officer’s Affidavit and Notice of Revocation which will serve as your temporary license. This temporary license will be valid for thirty days. To confirm that you have received the temporary license, lok at the bottom of the affidavit and there should be language stating that the form is a receipt and temporary license valid for thirty days.

If your license was previously suspended, expired, or not in your possession at the time of arrest, the paperwork will not contain this information. If license was valid at the time of arrest, any suspension will not begin for thirty days. Thus, if license was valid but you did not have it with you when you were arrested, the license is still valid for thirty days.

This Officer’s Affidavit and Notice of Revocation also has language informing you that you have 15 days to request a hearing from the Oklahoma Department of Public Safety if you wish to prevent license suspension. This notice is normally given on the same day as your arrest so Bruce and I normally inform people thay have 15 days from arrest. This 15 day rule is jurisdictional and in most instance, nothing can be done to prevent license suspension if the hearing is not requested within the 15 days.

The 15 day time frame is the same if you submitted to a blood test. However, the time frame does not begin until you receive notice from the Oklahoma Department of Public Safety that the blood test came back with a BAC of .08 or higher. This notice is a letter from DPS that is sent to your address on file with the state. Thus, if you have a old address on your license, you won’t receive the letter and will miss your time frame to request a hearing.

It is important to call Bruce or I as soon as possible after your arrest so we can prevent license suspension.