If you received a speeding ticket in New York State, you are now facing points, fines and surcharges, potential DMV penalties, and also increased auto insurance.
For a first NY speeding ticket conviction, the cost can range between $90 and $600. For example, if you’re speeding less than 10 miles over the limit, your ticket usually be between $90 and $150. If you are speeding between 11 and 30 miles over the limit, your ticket will be in the $90 to $300 range.
Every New York speeding ticket carries a court fine, mandatory New York State surcharge and points on your driving record. If you are a repeat offender, the range of fines is significantly higher.
The fines listed are for speeding tickets received anywhere in New York State except for the five boroughs (Manhattan, Brooklyn, Bronx, Queens and Staten Island).
Driver Responsibility Assessment Fee (DRA): If you receive 6 or more points as a result of violations that occurred within an 18 month period you will be subject to an additional fine known as the Driver Responsibility Assessment fee (DRA). When you reach 6 points you will be penalized $300. An additional $75 will be imposed for each point after the 6-point mark. This penalty is paid to DMV and is separate and in addition to the court fines associated with your ticket.
At 11 points the NY DMV will suspend your NY license or driving privileges (if you live out of state). Any points accumulated for violations that occur within a given 18-month period count towards suspension. If you have a CDL license or a Junior license, the penalties can be even more severe.
The Traffic Violations Bureau (TVB) handles traffic tickets in all 5 Boroughs of NYC ( Manhattan, Brooklyn, Queens, The Bronx and Staten Island). In the TVB the points are the same but the fine varies depending upon the nature of the violation. In addition, negotiating a settlement or reduction (known as a “plea bargain”) is not permitted (see below). Read more about NYC Speeding Tickets
Simply put, auto insurance is all about risk. You pay an auto insurance premium so that if you get into an auto accident your insurance provider will pay for the damage. An insurance underwriter’s primary role is to determine what your premium should be based on how likely they believe you are to get into an auto accident. The more traffic violations you have on your record, the greater the risk and the higher the premium. If you accumulate enough traffic tickets, your insurance company could even cancel your policy.
In most cases, it is NOT a good idea to plead guilty to the charge. Police officers and prosecutors want you to plead guilty to speeding charges because it makes their job easy. Pleading guilty means you give up your rights to a trial and you automatically have to pay fines, incur points on your license and pay higher auto insurance premiums. Instead of facing these consequences you can choose to plead not guilty and fight your ticket!
In many cases, an attorney can either get you a dismissal (all charges are dropped and without fines or penalties) or a reduction in fines and points. Here are some reasons why you should fight your speeding ticket:
Out of state drivers are subject to the same fines and surcharges as a NY driver. If a driver fails to pay these fines, NY will suspend his or her NY driving privileges and that individual will be barred from driving in New York during that period of suspension or revocation. In addition, the suspension will be reported to the driver’s home state which can also trigger a license suspension from your state DMV. In addition, many states will list out of state convictions (i.e. those that occurred in NY) and assess their own respective points and penalties. Sharing of information between states can therefore result in increased auto insurance rates. Thus, in most cases it is more advantageous to fight a New York speeding ticket even if the driver lives in a different state. Read More
There are many advantages of hiring an attorney. Our mission at Rosenblum Law is to get your ticket dismissed or minimize the impact on your record. Hiring an attorney to handle your case significantly increases your chances of getting a better outcome in your matter. We can offer you:
You should hire the Rosenblum Law Firm because:
Hiring us is fast and simple. Call us at 888-434-0406 for a free consultation.
How a New York speeding ticket is typically handled depends on the jurisdiction (where you received the violation). Since the process of fighting a speeding ticket can be more complex than meets the eye, we strongly recommend that you hire an experienced lawyer to handle your case. Call us at 1-888-434-0406 for a free consult.
If you received a speeding ticket in any location other than NYC, your ticket will be handled by a city, town or village court. The name and address of that court is listed at the bottom of the ticket (see example here). If you want to fight your ticket, you have to enter a plea of “Not Guilty” by filling out that portion of the ticket and mailing it to the court. The court will mail you a pre-trial conference notice on which to appear and discuss your case with the prosecutor to see if you can agree on a settlement.
Note, a prosecutor is not required to offer you a deal and may offer you a less favorable deal if you are not represented by an attorney.
Remember, attorneys (like the prosecutor) are skilled negotiators. You also have the right to reject any settlement you are offered and have a trial. The trial will most likely be held on a second or third court date (this means you will have to appear in court more than once). At the trial, the police officer will present testimony to support his case. You have the right to question or “cross-examine” the officer. The judge will make a ruling of innocence or guilt. If you are found “not guilty” you will not be required to pay any fines and you won’t get points. If you are found guilty you will get the full amount of points and be required to pay a fine.
In New York City the tribunal handling your ticket is called the Traffic Violations Bureau or “TVB” (except in a criminal case like DWI or reckless driving – those are handled by the criminal court). In the TVB there are no settlements or plea bargains so if you want to fight your ticket, the only way to do so is to have a trial. Trials are tricky business and best handled by an experienced attorney who knows how to ask the right questions and make the best legal arguments in your favor. Call us at 1-888-434-0406 to find out how we can help you fight your NYC speeding ticket.
A ticket for driving 15 mph over the posted limit can cost between $90 and $300. A conviction means 4 points on one’s driver’s license.
A ticket for speeding 20 mph over the posted limit can cost between $90 and $300. As above, a conviction can result in 4 points on one’s license; 1 mph more—21 mph—increases the points to 6!
Speeding 30 mph over the posted limit can cost between $90 and $300 and result in 6 points on one’s license and a minimum $300 DRA penalty in addition to the fine.
A speeding ticket will stay on your driving record for 3-4 years after the conviction.
How much an insurance company will increase one’s rates following a speeding ticket will depend on many factors, including the driver’s past history, income level, and just how fast the driver was going. Some studies have shown that rates can go up as much as 20% even for low speeds (<15 mph over). For serious speeders (30+ mph over the limit) it can be as much as 30%.
Each state handles out-of-state speeding tickets differently. Some will assess points as though the ticket were issued at home, and others will not. Nearly all states will communicate the details of the offense with a driver’s home state, and many will record the offense on one’s driving record as a result (even if no other penalties are issued). Visit our information page for more details on out-of-state traffic tickets.
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