I am texting you a link to upload your ticket. My response will be more precise and timely if you are able to upload the ticket.
Thank you for contacting me about your speeding ticket. When it comes to traffic tickets, you have two options. You can either hire a lawyer (that’s me) or you can simply pay the ticket and have it show up on your record for the world and your insurance company to see.
I want to share the difference between the two so you can make the best decision for you and your current situation. Let’s examine both.
Paying The Ticket
So you can probably go online and just pay the ticket and be done, right? But what happens after you pay the ticket is important. The Court will report the ticket to the Department of Revenue. And they will then report it as points or infractions on your record. This could affect your driving privilege if you already have ticket on your record or if you get another ticket in the future.
Not only does it affect your driving privilege, it affects your insurance. Your insurance company rates you annually. There are a number of different factors they take into consideration when giving you the rate (accidents, kind of car, number of drivers in the house, where you live . . .) but more importantly they base your insurance on the number of points or infractions you have on your record in the last three years. Insurance.com found that after one ticket the policyholder’s insurance on average increase 15-22%. Let’s do some math. Let’s say your insurance is $100/month.
Year Zero – no tickets on your record $100 $1200
Year One – ticket paid (15% increase) $115 $1380
Year Two – ticket paid ($15% increase) $132.25 $1587
Year Three – ticket paid (15% increase) $152.08 $1825.05
$400 difference between one ticket and no ticket!
Now let’s say you get another ticket in that time period. And this is a city or county where they don’t allow lawyers to negotiate on behalf of drivers. So you HAVE to take the points. And then we aren’t talking about a $400 difference in your car insurance, you are also talking about a potential license suspension due to infractions or points.
Hiring a Lawyer
When you hire me, you get the following benefits:
*No points on your record so no insurance increases
*Most likely you will not have to appear in Court.
*It is unlikely we will have to meet in person
*Most of our business can be done on the phone or via email.
The most valuable feature of hiring me is that if I can’t get an amendment or keep it off your record, I refund my attorney fee.
You will be hearing from me soon with a quote on how to keep this ticket off your record.
Thanks!
Aimee