PRAIRIE CITY Nolin Pages 88-year-old grandmother thought she was doing a nice thing when she put his name along with hers on the title to her old Ford pickup truck.

However, Fay Pages kind deed ran afoul of a state program that, for a time, threatened to cost him his drivers license and possibly his ability to drive at his job.

His grandmother wanted him to have the pickup when she passed, so she put him on the title, said Nolins dad, Rick Page. She was trying to do something nice for her grandson.

Since she doesnt drive in the ice and snow, she let her insurance lapse last winter. When she got a letter from the Oregon Department of Transportation requesting verification of insurance, she didnt think anything of it.

The agency then notified Nolin in writing June 12 that he must provide proof of the insurance on the vehicle or lose his drivers license in 30 days, even though it isnt his truck and he is insured for his own vehicle.

The demand frustrated his father, who said Nolin, 24, wasnt even in the county at that time.

He was going to school in Moscow, Idaho, Rick said. Hes never even been in her pickup.

Last week, the situation stymied even the Pages insurance agent. Despite calls to Division of Motor Vehicles, the only course seemed to be for Nolin to lose the license and then reapply, providing an SR-22 form something commonly used after a conviction for driving uninsured or drunk driving.

The SR-22 is a penalty process, and hes done nothing wrong, Rick said.

David House, spokesman for the Transportation Department, said he didnt know why the SR-22 option should come into play here.

Somewhere theres been a miscommunication about this, he said.

House felt the situation would be easily resolved by calling DMVs toll-free number and reporting that the vehicle had been mothballed during the period in question.

Mandy Taylor, the Bisnett Insurance agent trying to sort the problem out, said she did call DMV headquarters. She said she had a long conversation with the main office and explained the situation in detail.

The answer she got was that insurance is required on vehicles at all times, and mothballing it wasnt an excuse.

Nolins predicament wasnt the first time shes run into concerns about the states insurance verification program, in which insurance companies report any discrepancies in insurance information for vehicles they cover. In some cases, one number miskeyed on a VIN number will trigger a reporting issue like the one faced by the Pages, and it can take a lot of phone calls and paperwork to sort out, she said.

The whole insurance verification thing has been a nightmare, she said.

Rick Page, meanwhile, contacted his state legislators for help.

This week, he had good news the agency will accept a hand-written note from Fay Page about the title, and Nolin should be off the hook.

The incident brought a caution from House, who said no one should put another persons name on their car title without their consent.

Page said the DMV doesnt warn people about that, however, and the state doesnt require consent.

Maybe we ought to all put the governors name on our titles, and then not pay the insurance, he said. Maybe that would get their attention.