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Don’t want to wait in the MVC line? There’s a guy for that – if you’re willing to pay

Ever since the New Jersey Motor Vehicle Commission reopened its office last month, hundreds of people have waited for hours in line for the chance to register their vehicles or renew their licenses.

News 12 Staff

Aug 19, 2020, 11:06 PM

Updated 1,584 days ago

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Ever since the New Jersey Motor Vehicle Commission reopened its office last month, hundreds of people have waited for hours in line for the chance to register their vehicles or renew their licenses.
Wait times stretch into the hours and there is no guarantee that a person waiting on the line will get in to conduct their business before the MVC office closes.
This is where people like Jeff Mauro come in. Mauro woke up early in the morning to get on the line outside the Hazlet MVC office. He is being paid $175 to hold the spot for another person when the office opens at 8 a.m.
“You get here 5 a.m. or 6 a.m. and you’re already behind the building. You’re basically making a day of it,” says Mauro who showed up at 3 a.m. “Now I’m doing about three to four days a week.”
When the customer arrives at 7:45 a.m., Mauro – who is actually a high school teacher – is off to his other summer job as a handyman.
“I’ve always been very enterprising. I’ve always hustled, so I basically came up with the idea of sitting in line for someone who wants to get out of here early,” he says.
Mauro was not the only one who is taking advantage of the long lines of people outside the MVC. The person in spot No. 3 - who arrived at 11 p.m. the night before - was paid $100 to hold the spot.
Hector Mediavilla, of Edison, advertises his service on Instagram. He was at the MVC with a partner holding two spots.
John Alfaro, of Perth Amboy, paid for one of the spots that Mediavilla was holding
“Better than waiting like everyone else,” he says.
Mediavilla then went scanning the line looking for anyone who wanted to buy his second spot. Finally, back past the dumpsters, Mediavilla found Eric Halbert, of Allenhurst, who was willing to pay $75 to move from spot No. 200 to spot No. 35.
“I gotta get to work at 10 a.m.,” says Halbert. “I was kind of desperate.”
Police said there were no rules against holding spots, and that any attempt to prohibit it would be extremely difficult to enforce.