Tickets for speeding and other traffic violations may seem minor, and, in comparison to other criminal offenses a person might commit, traffic violations are some of the most harmless legal infractions a person can commit. Since speeding and traffic tickets come with relatively minimal fines, a lot of people simply pay them and never even think about challenging the issue in court. The problem with letting a speeding or traffic charge go uncontested is that these tickets don’t just affect immediate finances. They can have a long-term impact on your legal and financial situation, which makes fighting the charges against you worthwhile.
Beyond the Fine for Traffic Infractions
Every time you are ticketed for a speeding or other traffic violation, it results in points on your license, with different points for different infractions. An aggressive driving charge, for instance, results in six points on your license, while going ten or more miles per hour over the speed limit equates to two or three points on your license, depending upon the original speed limit.
When you accumulate seven points on your driver’s license, you may be ordered by the court to take a driver’s improvement class at your own expense. When you accumulate twelve points within a three-year period, your license may be suspended, with penalties up to the permanent revocation of your license if you continue to commit infractions.
Points on License = Increase in Insurance Costs
While the point system differs, most insurance companies in the state of North Carolina consider traffic infractions risk factors when it comes to determining premiums. The more traffic and speeding violations you commit, the more you can expect your insurance rates to go up, which means the financial repercussions of traffic tickets isn’t just the immediate fines, but also the long-term effects on your insurance costs.
Traffic and Speeding Ticket Attorney in Monroe
When you look at the whole picture of how much traffic and speeding tickets can impact you, both legally and financially, you can see why it’s so important to fight traffic charges brought against you, especially if you know you didn’t commit the infraction for which you were ticketed.
John Painter is a Monroe-based attorney who helps clients in Anson, Union, Stanly and Mecklenburg Counties fight charges for traffic and speeding infractions.
