When you get pulled over for going too fast, your first question may be about how much the speeding ticket costs. Traffic ticket prices are higher now than ever. Unfortunately, the total speeding ticket cost doesn’t end by just paying it. What you should also be asking is, “How much does my insurance go up after a speeding ticket?” Speeding tickets and insurance increases go hand in hand.
Why Speeding Raises Your Insurance Costs
So, what does a traffic ticket have to do with insurance? It’s simple. Insurance companies are in the business to make money. To do that, they sell policies to drivers. From the insurance company’s point of view, this is a risk. They’re betting that you’ll pay more in premiums than they’ll have to pay out in claims.
The worse your driving record is, the greater the risk for the insurance company. To keep their balance sheet on the positive side, they charge higher rates to the drivers most likely to have wrecks, which would lead to more insurance claims.
Speeding Tickets and Insurance:
Key Points
Since the data shows that drivers who speed are more likely to get in wrecks and file claims, you’re stuck paying more for insurance if you have Missouri drivers license points for speeding on your driving record. The best thing you can do to keep your record clean after you’re cited with speeding is to hire a traffic ticket attorney to help you avoid getting drivers license points added to your record. Missouri insurers use a number of criteria to determine your rate - where you live, the kind of car you drive, the number of drivers in your house, previous wrecks and the points on your record! Speeding tickets add at least two points to your record and in some cases (Highway Patrol tickets), you can get THREE points.
Aimee Gromowsky
Kansas City Traffic Lawyer
"You always want to keep speeding tickets off your record."
Now for a Free Review of Your Situation
Here’s What Makes It Worse
If you get a speeding ticket for going barely over the speed limit, it might not have a major effect on your insurance rates. Unfortunately, there’s no guarantee that you’ll have only one ticket. Each speeding ticket you accumulate adds to points to your license and makes you look like a greater risk for the insurance company.
It could get worse. It could get a lot worse. If you get caught speeding more than 20 miles per hour, you may have to do more than pay the ticket - community service, a driving school and probation are all on the table now.
Whether you have multiple speeding tickets, you need to find to keep these tickets off your record. Otherwise, your insurance costs may skyrocket. Your rates could be raised up to 30% the next time you renew your policy!
What Can You Do About Insurance Increases from Speeding Tickets?
So, what can you do to avoid these increased insurance costs after a ticket? Here are a few things to consider:
- Take a safe driving course to improve your driving skills and build better habits.
- Slow down.
- Remember that paying the ticket is an admission of guilt.
- Check with your insurance provider.
- Talk to a Kansas City traffic lawyer about how to get out of a speeding ticket.
Insurance increases can wreck your budget. If your driving record is bad enough, you may have a hard time getting insurance at all. Certainly, it’s best to avoid speeding. However, if you do get a ticket, you may still be able to avoid high insurance costs by getting the right help from someone who knows Missouri traffic law.
