Beat a speeding ticket - and save on your insurance
It really is often possible to beat a speeding ticket, if you are prepared and know what you are doing. Of course, the best way to beat a ticket is to drive safely in the first place, but assuming you already received a ticket, you do have several options, depending in part on where you live.
Getting a speeding ticket can be expensive and stressful. Just seeing those lights pulling you over is enough to ruin your week. Then you get the bill - $100, $150, even $200 for a FIRST OFFENSE.
Tickets can be an expensive proposition. But the true cost of a speeding ticket or other infraction will not be evident until you get your next insurance bill.
Just one ticket on your driving record can lead to a 25% increase (or more) in your insurance premium.
Even if your premium is low, this can mean several hundred dollars each year in additional taxes, and a total of a couple thousand dollars over the span that the ticket stays on your record.
So how do you beat a speeding ticket? There actually are more ways to do so than you might think.
Beating a speeding ticket: a shorthand guide
Often, your odds of beating a ticket are dictated largely by your behavior after you are stopped. Officers are often taught to decide whether to cite you or to let you off with just a warning BEFORE they even arrive at your car.
Therefore, you can enhance your chances of getting a warning by promptly and cautiously pulling over in the nearest safe location, then sitting with your hands clearly visible on the steering wheel. This can help reassure the officer that you are not a threat and that you will politely comply with his or her instructions.
Once in contact with the officer, remain polite but do not offer excuses, as this implies guilt. Instead simply answer only the questions asked, move cautiously, and offer no more information than absolutely necessary.
Above all else, try and make your traffic stop as non-memorable as possible for the officer. The more polite and forgettable you are, the less the chance he or she will go out of their way to show up at a court hearing, if there is one.
What should you do after you get a speeding ticket?
Once you get the ticket in the mail, make sure you either respond or pay it on time. Not doing so can lead to huge fines and even a warrant for your arrest.
In some states, notably, Rhode Island, you can ask for the ticket to be dismissed outright. If you have had no other moving violations in the previous three years, there is a good chance you will succeed.
In many other states like California, you can ask to be sent to a one-day traffic school. Upon completion (and paying your fine, a traffic school fee, and tuition), the ticket is wiped from your record.
While this option can be expensive, adding some $60-80 to the price of your ticket, the savings in lower insurance premiums will make up for this cost many times over.
However, if you cannot attend traffic school (you can only go once every 18 to 36 months - the length of time depends on the state or county), you are then left with the option of paying the ticket or fighting it.
If you pay the ticket, you are pretty much admitting guilt, and your insurance will almost always go up (unless your insurer has a policy of overlooking your first ticket).
Therefore, fighting the ticket is usually worth your effort. One way you can win your case by default is if the officer fails to show up for your trial. While it is not guaranteed, most often, if the officer is a no-show, the judge will dismiss your case and void your ticket.
In some crowded metropolitan districts like L. A., officers are said to show up only about half the time. This means you have a 50/50 chance of winning right of the bat.
In case the officer does show up, you can prepare for your case by studying the law, taking photos of the location of the alleged infraction, and even by getting a copy of the officer's notes.
Officers generally take notes on the back of the ticket. In California and possibly in other states as well, you have the right under discovery laws to get a copy of these notes. This allows you to know exactly what the officer knows about your case, and can really enhance your chances of winning in court.
I have found, anecdotally, that when you secure a copy of these notes, the officer is even less likely to show up at your hearing, and if he does, you have the ability to argue your case without any surprises from the officer.
Winning your case takes research into the relevant local law and respectful argument in court, but it you are prepared, and if your case is not cut and dry, you stand a pretty good chance of winning.
Given the cost in elevated insurance premiums over many years, it is worth at least attempting to fight your ticket. If you do beat a speeding ticket, you can really save some serious money.
