Traffic Tickets Will Cost You

Traffic Tickets Will Cost You
Car insurance is expensive enough but if you have a lead foot it can cost you even more.  Traffic tickets will cost you more than just points on your license they can also drive up the cost of your insurance.  Driving carefully not only helps to protect the public and reduce the amount of accidents on our roads and highways it is can also save you money.

Speeding Tickets

There are over 41 million speeding tickets written each and every year in the US alone with the average cost of a ticket being around $125 each.  You have a 1 in 6 chance of getting caught speeding as you travel along the highways and roadways.  When you are pulled over for speeding not only are you going to get a fine but you stand a chance of losing your license if you are a repeat offender.  Depending on where you are caught the fines can get pretty hefty.

Your Insurance Rates

When the time comes to renew your car insurance you may be in for a very unpleasant surprise.  You will discover that your insurance rates have climbed drastically.  You may think that your insurance company is being pretty punitive but that is not actually the case.  Insurance rates are based on statistics and profits and losses.  Having several speeding tickets says to the insurance company that you are far more likely to get into an accident and they are going to have to pay out a claim because of that.  That means their risk is higher so in order to continue offering you insurance they will have to charge you more.  Here is a look at how rates are calculated.

Your Driving Record

While there are other factors that affect your insurance rates like anti-theft devices, the amount of your deductible and your age, the biggest impact is going to come from your driving record.  Insurance companies view a driving record as an indicator of how likely it will be that you will get into an accident.  Having a bunch of moving violations on your record is an indicator that you’re not a very responsible driver.

DUI

If you have a record or are charged with a DUI then your insurance rates are going to skyrocket.  In fact you may see your policy cancelled altogether.  Driving under the influence is just about the worst case scenario when it comes to your insurance rates.

Car insurance is necessary is most cases, it protects you, your car and other drivers on the road.  That doesn’t mean that you have to drive up the costs by driving irresponsible.  Safe driving saves lives and saves you money.