Canadian driver's licences valid in Florida, authorities say
CBC News
Posted: Feb 14, 2013 10:23 AM ET

Canadians were caught off guard by new legislation in Florida that quietly came into place Jan. 1 that mandates non-U.S. residents driving in the state carry an international driving permit, but authorities have announced that the law will not be enforced.

The Department of Highway Safety and Motor Vehicles issued a statement detailing that the new statute may be in violation of the Geneva Convention on Road Traffic and therefore the Florida Highway Patrol (FHP) will defer enforcement of violations of the amended statutory section.

Non-resident drivers need only a valid licence with their name on it, issued from their home country.

It further stated that "...the FHP will not take enforcement action based solely on the lack of an International Driving Permit (IDP)."

Confusion among Canadians

Initially, news of the law triggered confusion among Canadian travellers planning to go to the sunshine state.

The Canadian Automobile Association (CAA) is in charge of administering IDPs. Terry Fox, manager of its legal advisory department, said offices had been inundated with applications, with over 900 submitted today.

There were also mixed messages concerning how the law would affect those who wanted to rent cars.

When contacted, Budget Rent A Car said its official stance on the matter was that all Canadians will be expected to present an IDP along with their official driver`s licence and credit card upon renting a vehicle.

But a staff member at Budget Rent A Car at Miami International Airport said they had heard of no such law and that a Canadian licence would suffice.

The CAA stated that the Florida law was passed so police would not be faced with licence documents in languages they could not understand.

http://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/montreal/ ... cense.html

DING DONG and that's not the Avon ringing the door bell.

I'm sure this isn't the first time Canadians have been confused by Floridians.