Renewing my car licence through government’s online system – Not so easy this time

I renewed my vehicle licence disc through the Online National Traffic Information System (eNatis) but a prolonged issue with the payment portal proved to complicate matters far more than when I used it last year.

This Januworry, my car licence disc was due for its annual renewal and as the upstanding citizen I sometimes try to be, I headed to eNatis to perform the vital task.

The process went forth without a hitch, at least at the start.

I logged in, selected the vehicle that was due, entered my delivery details, punched in my bank card particulars, and right when I thought my money had been taken, I was hit with an error reading: “This site can’t be reached.”

“No biggie,” I thought, these kinds of things happen all the time for a bunch of reasons.

I changed my internet connection to another provider – we have several network providers in the office – and tried once more. To my surprise, the exact same thing happened.

I gave it a few hours, tried again, and got the same result once again.

The day was almost over, I had better things to do, so I decided to leave it until the following morning. Online systems are regularly refreshed at midnight whilst everyone is asleep, so I thought eNatis might be undergoing an internal update and that all would be hunky-dory when I wake up.

Back at my computer the next morning I tried again, but the problem persisted.

I attempted the process with a different card, a different device, and several different connections including mobile data on my phone. I enabled popups, cookies, and redirects on my browser – but still no cigar.

While this debacle was unfolding I was having a conversation with a family member one afternoon and completely unprovoked, she complained she had to make the pilgrimage back to the nightmarish Post Office for the first time in a while to renew her car licence as she was unable to do so online.

It became clear, something must be up.

A convenient coincidence

After this conversation, I put my journalist hat back on and reached out to the Road Traffic Management Corporation (RTMC), which is in charge of eNatis, at mid-day Monday, the 10th of February.

I explained the situation, provided the proof via screenshots of both my computer and phone screens, and asked several questions with a deadline for feedback set for close of business on Wednesday, the 12th.

Come Thursday morning I had still not heard anything from the RTMC, so I sent a follow-up mail to confirm whether it had received my first one and if it would be providing any answers.

Whilst doing so, I also thought to venture back to eNatis to try renewing the licence disc once again, just in case the issues had been sorted out in the meantime.

I repeated the process just as I did at the start – logged in, selected the applicable car, provided delivery details, and entered the banking info.

Lo and behold, this time everything worked with nary a hiccup. The payment was accepted within seconds and I could immediately download my receipt.

This was in stark contrast to the entire week prior, where the payment would dependably fail the numerous times I tried it.

Peculiarly, these failures also occurred before I contacted the RTMC with inquiries surrounding the seemingly dysfunctional payment portal.

Later that same Thursday, at 18h36 in the evening, I received SMS confirmation from the RTMC that my new licence disc would be delivered within three to five working days.

More surprisingly, at 10h34 the next morning I got an SMS from SkyNet couriers letting me know that the parcel was out for delivery on that day – one working day after the renewal was logged.

To say I was flabbergasted with the prompt government service would be an understatement.

By four o’clock on Friday afternoon the disc had yet to arrive at the provided address, which was my office. I decided it was time to go home as, on the balance of probability, it would likely not be delivered that day.

I assumed correctly, as on Monday morning there was still no package on my desk and after confirming with the receptionist, I was certain that it was never delivered.

I got on the line with SkyNet couriers who was incredibly polite and helpful. At 14h07, the SkyNet representative informed me that the disc was out for delivery again that day, and the waiting continued.

At 16h07 the afternoon of Monday, 17 February, the SkyNet delivery man showed up at the door and with a quick signature I had my new licence disc in hand.

Perhaps needless to say, as I’m writing this article five days after my last mail to the RTMC, it still hasn’t replied to the queries nor confirmed that it received them.

Was the suddenly operational payment portal a mere coincidence, then? Maybe.

Was there a problem with eNatis, or possibly with the banks it partnered with? Who really knows.

In any case, I’m happy to report that my vehicle is legal on the road again until January 2026 and that government’s online licence renewal service still (sometimes) works.

I was stuck with a late renewal fine, and with fears I could get in trouble with the law if pulled over, because the eNatis error meant I went beyond the grace period, but what a small price to pay to avoid a South African Post Office.

For those who will inevitably raise the point of more online disc renewal services being available, I am well aware of this fact. I simply saw it as my annual civic duty to ensure eNatis still functions.