So, I got a speeding ticket yesterday.....

[peloquin]

Re: So, I got a speeding ticket yesterday.....

i heard if the cop doesnt show for any reason they drop the ticket? is that untrue

[toasty]

Re: So, I got a speeding ticket yesterday.....

Just for my info how much would the insurance typically go up? Would it actually be more than the fine and the lawyer fees combined?

Too many variables to really say, because it will depend upon how many other tickets you've had, what they were for, and what the charge is at the time. In general, though, when you consider that you're going to be paying auto insurance as long as you drive your car, I find it hard to envision a situation where it would be cheaper in the long run to just pay the fine, even considering legal fees. It won't take very long at all for the insurance rate increase to eat up the savings of just paying the fine, likely less than a year. Also, if you get another ticket, you're going to have problems getting it fixed because you have another one already on your record, and you have a snowballing effect.

If the ticket happened in a different state, it might be worth rolling the dice, but if you ever apply for new insurance, you'd theoretically have to disclose it anyway so it may not be worth running the risk.

[DancingQueen]

Re: So, I got a speeding ticket yesterday.....

you got a ticket for only going 17 over the limit? They usually don't bother with that around here....usually have to be 20 or over.

Regardless, sorry to hear you got a speeding ticket....I don't know if I would bother fighting it for $80, but then again I wouldn't want to lose points

[toasty]

Re: So, I got a speeding ticket yesterday.....

i heard if the cop doesnt show for any reason they drop the ticket? is that untrue

That's normally the case, yes.

[FM]

Re: So, I got a speeding ticket yesterday.....

I'd go to court...worst case, you pay a little in court costs and the ticket doesn't change...best case, you get it reduced to a minimum and either get no points, or 1.
The fact you mentioned that it's been 6 years since your last one could help your case (and that one probably isn't even on your record anymore)...by having points on the insurance, you'll pay much more in the long run.

But as said above, don't just pay the thing directly, unless for some reason you then can't make your scheduled court date and can't move it...

[sammwalk]

Re: So, I got a speeding ticket yesterday.....

definitely go to court. i've gone twice for speeding tickets and both times things wound up better for me. i'm sure this varies from state to state, but here's what I've been through in NJ: you go in (be there a little ahead of time), when the judge calls your name, you tell him/her you'd like to speak to the prosecutor. he/she might even suggest this to you. you leave the court room and line up to see the prosecutor to the side. when it's your turn to speak to the prosecutor, if you don't have an attorney, he/she will ask you what you want to do. most likely the issuing officer will be there too. tell them you'd like to get the ticket reduced. depending on local traffic law, what they will most likely do is lower the ticket to the next-less-severe penalty. for example, as someone said before, 4 pts to 2 pts, 2 pts to a non-moving violation, etc...in your case, whatever threshold is the next lower on your ticket. in NJ, 17 over is a pretty stiff fine, so they will usually lower it to 14 over, which is just under then next lowest threshold, saving you points and fines.

i'm willing to bet you won't get away without incurring some points, but trust me: having points on your license follows you around for a long time. years. and if you get enough, at least in NJ, you have to pay surcharges in the range of $100 a year until the points go away, which takes three years per ticket. those points, in turn, make your insurance much more expensive. honestly, i was paying twice as much as i would have if i hadn't gotten any tickets, and insurance is thousands a year.

for me, my fines were not changed; it only appears that way because when you visit the cashier she tallies up the cost of the ticket, the court fees, etc. all on one bill.

so, find a way to get to court and do what you can. hire an attorney if you're rich. but you'll be saving money in the long run.

[DJJEFFJONES]

Re: So, I got a speeding ticket yesterday.....

Stick it to the man!

[neoee]

Re: So, I got a speeding ticket yesterday.....

your chances of winning in court are somewhere between nil and none... you'll say you weren't going that fast, cop will say you were (if he/she shows up)... case closed thanks for stopping by. i've never heard of a prosecuter taking a larger fine in exchange for points as traffic court is different from municiple (crimes) court and is handled by a judge not a prosecuter. if it's your first ticket go to traffic school, if it's not pay the fine, go on and don't get another for at least two years.

I disagree with this. I haven't had any tickets stick in over 5 years and believe me, I've had my share of tickets (I'd say somewhere between 50 and 100) since I was 16. Once I learned how the courts operate I became successful at getting tickets dismissed. In WA. up until earlier this year we had a filing procedure which required the officer to file the ticket with the court within 2 days, excluding weekends and holidays. If he failed to file you could bring up the rule and have the ticket dismissed. Earlier this year they changed it to 5 days so now its a bit harder to get out of tickets. Also you can get the SMD certification and make sure its current, many times they are not. Thats cause for dismissal as well.

It just comes down to how much homework you want to do. Else you can pay an attorney. For traffic tickets (around here) its usually between 150 and 300. Usually the attorneys with the 300 dollar fee only get paid (or partial payment) if they get the ticket dismissed. If they get the infraction amended to a non-moving violation they will pay the fine out of their fee. The ones who charge 150 is simply a flat fee with best effort.

[sammwalk]

Re: So, I got a speeding ticket yesterday.....

I disagree with this. I haven't had any tickets stick in over 5 years and believe me, I've had my share of tickets (I'd say somewhere between 50 and 100) since I was 16.

surely you jest...+/-15 tickets a year? bullshit, imo

[geoffgulley]

Re: So, I got a speeding ticket yesterday.....

I disagree with this. I haven't had any tickets stick in over 5 years and believe me, I've had my share of tickets (I'd say somewhere between 50 and 100) since I was 16. Once I learned how the courts operate I became successful at getting tickets dismissed. In WA. up until earlier this year we had a filing procedure which required the officer to file the ticket with the court within 2 days, excluding weekends and holidays. If he failed to file you could bring up the rule and have the ticket dismissed. Earlier this year they changed it to 5 days so now its a bit harder to get out of tickets. Also you can get the SMD certification and make sure its current, many times they are not. Thats cause for dismissal as well.

It just comes down to how much homework you want to do. Else you can pay an attorney. For traffic tickets (around here) its usually between 150 and 300. Usually the attorneys with the 300 dollar fee only get paid (or partial payment) if they get the ticket dismissed. If they get the infraction amended to a non-moving violation they will pay the fine out of their fee. The ones who charge 150 is simply a flat fee with best effort.

read all of the posts.... toasty and i already discussed this.

[neoee]

Re: So, I got a speeding ticket yesterday.....

surely you jest...+/-15 tickets a year? bullshit, imo

No really, probably on the lower end though. And I'm not as bad as my friend who has many, many, more. One of these days I will have to get a copy of my records from the courts, to scan in. I know for certian I have had 4 wreckless drivings and 3 neglegent drivings (thats easy to remember). And I had my license suspended one year for having "too many tickets within a year" (6 that year). And that didn't include the tickets that got dismissed. That was when I got smart and started hiring a lawyer and also learned how to fight my own tickets.

BTW it would only take 5 tickets a year over 10 years to get to 50 and I've been driving (legally) since I was 16.

[geoffgulley]

Re: So, I got a speeding ticket yesterday.....

^^ mercurydrivingschool imo

[sammwalk]

Re: So, I got a speeding ticket yesterday.....

No really, probably on the lower end though. And I'm not as bad as my friend who has many, many, more. One of these days I will have to get a copy of my records from the courts, to scan in. I know for certian I have had 4 wreckless drivings and 3 neglegent drivings (thats easy to remember). And I had my license suspended one year for having "too many tickets within a year" (6 that year). And that didn't include the tickets that got dismissed. That was when I got smart and started hiring a lawyer and also learned how to fight my own tickets.

BTW it would only take 5 tickets a year over 10 years to get to 50 and I've been driving (legally) since I was 16.

well, you alluded to having not had any tickets stick in 5 years, so i assumed that was the timespan in which you had been driving...5 tickets sounds more reasonable, but still...jesus. don't they notice you getting so many tickets? you'd think they'd revoke your license or something. shit, if you had 1/4 of that here in NJ, you'd never drive again!

are you sure you're not an asian woman?

[neoee]

Re: So, I got a speeding ticket yesterday.....

well, you alluded to having not had any tickets stick in 5 years, so i assumed that was the timespan in which you had been driving...5 tickets sounds more reasonable, but still...jesus. don't they notice you getting so many tickets? you'd think they'd revoke your license or something. shit, if you had 1/4 of that here in NJ, you'd never drive again!

are you sure you're not an asian woman?

The key word being STICK . If they can't find that you committed it's not on your record. They can give you thousands of tickets, in the end its the number of tickets that stick that count. Though I will admit in the past 5 or so years I have only been given maybe 5 tickets.

And no I'm not an asian woman, I was just born with a lead foot. And honestly I don't think I'm that crazy of a driver. Now, my friend I mentioned earlier... I could write a book on all the crazy stuff thats happened with his driving, some of it you would think belonged in a hollywood movie.

[sakio pod]

Re: So, I got a speeding ticket yesterday.....

me and my girl we're coming home from work last night and got yanked by some douchebag going 65 in a 45

and he came back just to tell her to watch her speed

if it was me i would have been fucked