The Consequences of Signing Your Ticket

When you sign your ticket, you promise to go to court or pay your fine.  So if you don’t go to court or pay your fine, your driver license can get suspended.  And you may not be able to renew your car’s registration.

The judge can also charge you with contempt of court or the failure to pay a fine.  What this means is that the Court can charge you with a misdemeanor and issue a warrant for your arrest or add an additional fee (aka civil assessment) of up to $300.00

So you better make sure you either pay your fine or let the court know that you are going to contest it by attending the hearing date.

Someone aksed me a really good question today.  They asked, what happens if you pay for your ticket and forget to write “not guilty” on it.  Does that mean that you waive your rights to contest the ticket and to request for a trial later on?

Most of the time, you are usually asked to tell the court your intention online or at court if you are going to contest the ticket.  At which point, you are given a hearing date.  You might have to post bail when the trial or hearing date is pending.

I am going to need to look into this question and post back the answer.

My people do not realize the impact a traffic ticket can have on their car insurance.  Even a relatively minor ticket for improperly opening a car door can have as severe an impact on your car insurance rate as speeding.

Minor convictions that can disqualify you from getting a lower insurance rate are:

• Crowding the driver’s seat or overloading a vehicle
• Driving without a licence
• Failure to use seatbelts
• Operating a vehicle without proper headlights
• Carrying an unsecured load
• Obstructing traffic
• Making unnecessary noise.

There are also major violation that can effect your insurance policy rate that don’t involve an actual accident.  For example, the failure to report an accident, damage to highway property, and speeding.

The obvious no brainers are criminal convictions like a DUI, failing to obey the police, or to remain at the accident scene, racing, refusing to take a breathalyster test

So you have to really take any vehicle ticket very seriously as they can all have a severe impact on your insurance rate/

Whenever you need or want to check the status of your driver’s license, you can order a driving record report from the DMV. This record will spell out if your driver’s license is currently valid. Should your license have been revoked or suspended, the report will indicate that according to what’s on record at the DMV. This report will also show points against your license and, in some cases, information on any accidents you have had.

It similar to checking your credit.  Its good to do it once in a while to see if everything is accurate and if points which should be removed have been.

The Department of Motor Vehicles uses a “point system” to rate driving records, starting each driver with a clean driving record. A traffic ticket, however, can change all that. These are examples of one-point incidents:

• An accident in which you are at fault

• A minor moving violation (traffic ticket)

These will get you two points:

• Reckless driving

• Driving on a suspended or revoked license

• Hit-and-run accident

• Driving under the influence of drugs or alcohol (DUI)

As you acquire points, you place yourself in danger of losing your driver’s license.  The DMV has the right to suspend or revoke your driving privileges if you accumulate a certain number of points over a set period of time.

• Four points within a 12-month period

• Six points in a 24-month period

• Eight points in a 36-month period

Contrary to popular thought, driving records are not automatically cleared of all points once the points are over a year old.

The DMV will notify drivers when points are logged against their driving records. Once you have received half of the points required for a license revocation, the DMV will send you a warning letter.

Once you get within a single point of the revocation limit, the DMV will send you a Notice of Intent to Suspend, letting you know that you perilously close to losing your license.

If your driver’s license is suspended due to points, the DMV will mail you an Order of Probation/Suspension.

When you apply for car insurance, and every time you renew your policy, your insurance company checks your driving records.  If you have accumulated points, your rates will go up.

Time will clear your record of any points logged against it. Here is a breakdown of how long each point infraction will remain on your driving record:

• One-point additions to a driving record are usually cleared after three years, as are most two-point additions.

• Failure to appear in court for any traffic violation will remain on the driving record for five years. Failure to appear in court for a DUI will remain on record for 10 years.

To avoid getting points, you might be able to attend traffic school to keep the points from being added to your record.  But most of all don’t break the law and when you do get a ticket fight it.