How Traffic Violations Increase Insurance

Most people don’t leave their homes thinking, “I’m going to drive poorly today.” But as life happens over the course of your day, you may find yourself at the receiving end of a traffic violation, which can mean court appearances, expensive fines, and even a suspended driver’s license if you’re a repeat offender. Whether your traffic violation was true negligence or just an accident, getting that ticket can also mean a car insurance increase. If you are in a tough financial situation following a traffic violation, CashMax offers short-term financial solutions that may help.

Rate Hikes

We’ve explored some of the ways in which receiving a traffic violation can affect your auto insurance rates. To put it simply, the more insurance companies view you as an unsafe driver, the more you are likely to pay for your insurance. But, specifically, the following factors can affect how much your insurance is impacted by a traffic violation:

• Frequency: When you’ve received a lot of traffic tickets, insurance companies will typically see you as a liability and as someone who is more likely to be involved in an auto accident. The consequence of that is that you will pay more for your insurance than someone with a clean driving record.
• Severity: The impact a traffic violation will have on your insurance depends on the severity of the infraction. Being cited for something more minor, like traveling 5 miles over the speed limit, will likely have little—or even no—impact on your insurance rate, particularly if it’s the first ticket you’ve had in a long time. However, being cited for, say, traveling 30 miles per hour over the speed limit is much more extreme and can have more severe repercussions. An even more serious violation, like a DUI or vehicular manslaughter, will have dire consequences—both legally and in terms of your insurance costs.
• Location: Many people mistakenly think that receiving a traffic violation in another state won’t affect their car insurance, but that isn’t necessarily true. Before you engage in any risky driving behaviors while on vacation, bear in mind that most states take part in an interstate information sharing program that reports citations and moving violations. So, odds are good that the speeding ticket or DUI violation you received during spring break is going to follow you home and end up on your driving record—which means your insurance provider will likely find out about it and may adjust your premium accordingly.