Reinstating a Voluntarily Cancelled CDL

Hi Bay Trucker, and welcome aboard. Sorry, you're screwed. I did the same thing when moving from Wisconsin to Colorado. The DOT guy asked if I wanted to transfer my Wis. CDL, $8 bucks. I said, I'm done trucking, push the button. He then said, you realize, if I cancel this, if you want a CDL again, you have to start all over. I said that's fine, push the button. I doubt Cal. is any different, THEN, for more salt in the wounds, companies I talked to wanted me to go through a refresher course as well. I said, WHAT? I have over 3.5 million safe miles, I backed up more than they drove forward, didn't matter, ins. rules the roost there. Good luck.

 

I kept my CDL, but didn’t drive for 7 years. Had to start from the bottom. Had to ride in the trainer’s truck too. Talk about a humbling and humiliating experience. If I won a billion dollars and never had to wipe my own arse again in my life, I would keep my CDLs for just in case.

 

My state, not CA thankfully, gives 5 years since downgrade of CDL to reinstate it. After that you have to do everything like you never had a CDL. IMO, it's always better to keep your CDL & not use it than to give it up, just because starting over as brand new is more effort than the minimum necessary to maintain it and not use it.

Call or email the state. It's not going to hurt anything & they are the experts. 97 guesses may be almost correct, or not. I'd rather get 1 correct answer than lots of almost correct answers.

 

My dad told me to never give it up. I went to junior college, university and worked for a few years. I paid to keep a current physical. I didn't drive a revenue mile in nearly 14 years after I quit driving as kid. Best advice he gave me!

 

I take that back, apparently, in Colorado you do have 1 year. I didn't even listen to that part, I wanted out so badly.

 

I'm in Illinois and got mine downgraded to intrastate use. They said all I'd need to do to reinstate would be to show a current med card, just like I was updating the med card and had kept everything current.

 

Ha ha ha , you Da man!