Personal Injury Lawyer

Many people find themselves driving on unfamiliar roads due to the following circumstances.

• Vacation travel
• Business travel
• Infrequent driving

Receiving a traffic ticket while you are driving in another state can be unsettling and confusing. A traffic ticket lawyer might advise you to take the following actions.

Pay the Fine

Paying the fine for a traffic ticket issued in another state may be the most expedient way to deal with it. Unless you intend to contest it in court, you risk further penalties and even arrest if you don’t pay it. Not paying a fine will also haunt you when you return to your home state because of the interstate Driver License Compact (DLC) (https://apps.csg.org/ncic/Compact.aspx?id=56), which obligates most states to share details about traffic infractions and violations.

Attend Driving School

You can also determine if the state that issued the ticket offers an online driving school with classes you can take to remove points from your record. You will still be responsible for the fine, but you won’t need to worry about added points.

Contact Your Insurance Carrier

Your insurance carrier uses an entirely different system of points when it calculates your monthly premiums. If you receive an out-of-state traffic ticket, you won’t be able to prevent your carrier from knowing about it; however, you can ask about having the points waived if you attend driving school. If you’ve never had a ticket before, your carrier may agree. The way your insurer deals with an out of state ticket will vary according to a particular policy.

Prepare Your Case

If you decide that you want to contest an out-of-state ticket, a traffic ticket lawyer can assist you in preparing to present your case in a court of the state where the ticket was issued. Challenging a ticket can be complicated if you are unfamiliar with state laws, and you can’t expect the court to waive either the fine or the points.

Understand the Rules

Never assume that traffic rules are the same as the state in which you live. For instance, familiarizing yourself with local traffic regulations before driving in another state is the best way to avoid costly tickets for speeding, illegal turns or other citations. Although this approach may take some effort, it can save you from substantial headaches, fines and insurance premium increases over the long term.

If you receive a ticket while driving out of state and don’t know what to do, contact a traffic lawyer, like from The Law Office of Mark T. Hurt, for advice.