Do you have a traffic ticket?

Have you received a traffic ticket? Are you thinking of paying it? Don't. Not until you've spoken to a traffic ticket lawyer or paralegal (a traffic court "agent"), and you've learned what paying that ticket will mean to you."

If you drive long enough, you'll probably get a traffic ticket.

Almost everyone gets a traffic ticket at one time or another. It may be for speeding, careless driving, or some other moving violation. If you've been given a ticket, your probably . . . upset. That's understandable. You might be thinking that you should just pay the ticket and get it over with. But that would be a mistake.

A speeding ticket or any other traffic ticket can be costly. Convictions can result in not only the cost of the ticket, but also the suspension of your driver's licence and huge increases in your auto insurance. In many cases convictions have hidden but far-reaching consequences, disrupting vast areas of the convicted person's life.

Don't pay a traffic ticket until you're fully informed.

Never pay or plead guilty to any traffic ticket until you know a few things. Paying a ticket is the same as entering a guilty plea. And you should never plead guilty to any charge, including a traffic charge, until you know how guilty plea will affect you.

There's more to a traffic ticket than just the fine.

You might be thinking that all you have to worry about is the fine. But the fine, and even a high fine, may be the least of your worries.

All moving violations carry demerit points or penalty points.

A "moving violation" is a traffic offence whereby you are stopped by the police and issued a traffic ticket. The officer writes down your drivers licence number on the ticket. If you are convicted of the offence (let's say, for example, "speeding"), the associated number of demerit points will be placed on your driving record. If you get too many points on your driver's license, your drivers' license will be taken from you (suspended).

If you're convicted of a traffic charge, your car insurance can go way up

Sometimes your insurance premiums can go up by hundreds,even thousands of dollars per year, because of traffic offences. Insurance companies base your premium on the risk they associate with you as a driver. That "risk" is directly tied your driving record. The more tickets you are convicted of, the more demerits you get and the higher your insurance premiums will be. And if you become too high a risk for them, they simply won’t insure you at all.

One traffic ticket can be one too many.

And you don't have to get a lot of tickets for this to happen. Just one ticket can result in the loss of your license, and increased insurance premiums.

Fortunately, it doesn’t have to be that way.

A traffic ticket lawyer or a traffic court agent can protect your driving record and your low insurance rate from the impact of speeding tickets and other types of traffic tickets. They can provide you with provide professional, affordable legal representation to those charged with traffic violations.

So if you've been given a traffic ticket, even if it's your first one, check into things before you plead guilty.

Start by looking through our website, Watch our videos, and learn all you can. Then go to the "find a lawyer" search box and enter your location. Then make sure you talk to a professional about your traffic ticket.