Speeding is costly. Full coverage car insurance costs in the U.S. for a speeding ticket are $2,029 per annum, compared with $1674 for a clean driving record.
It’s difficult to determine the average speeding ticket cost because penalties are assessed based on how many miles you drive in states such as Wyoming, Pennsylvania, and Michigan. Most states have penalties of around $150. Additional costs and court fees can be added to this figure.
Other penalties may also apply depending on where you live. This is how speeding will affect your wallet in the U.S. as a driver in 2021.
Statistics on key speeding tickets
- 42 Million Speeding Tickets are issued each year in the U.S.
- Each year, more than 20% of U.S. motorists receive a speeding ticket. (CreditDonkey).
- 150 dollars is the average penalty for speeding. Court costs and fees are added. (LawFirms
- 1 in 6 Americans (112,000 drivers) get a speeding ticket every day.
What is the cost of a speeding ticket?
Although the terms ticket and citation are often used interchangeably, they are both the same thing: a written record that details an error made while driving.
According to the most recent 2021 data on state speeding penalties, an average speeding ticket costs $150 and a $355 increase for full-coverage car insurance. There are many factors that can influence the price of a speeding ticket.
- Speed: The cost of your speeding ticket will be affected by the speed at which you travel. Higher speeds can lead to criminal charges, license suspensions, and even jail time.
- Your state: It doesn’t matter where you live. Nevada has stricter speeding penalties than other states. After just one speeding ticket, Louisiana drivers will see an average $793 increase in their car insurance, despite already having the highest annual full coverage car insurance rates at 2 724.
- Type of area: You could be subject to much harsher penalties if you’re caught speeding in high-risk areas like schools, work, or construction zones.
- Severity: If you are caught speeding by a police officer, such as reckless driving or drunk driving, your ticket will likely be more severe.
- Driver record: A history of speeding and other moving violations could lead to harsher penalties than for a first-time offense.
Additional costs associated with speeding tickets
Speeding can have different consequences. The penalties you face will ultimately depend on the officer who pulled your car over and the local court system. Speeding can also have other consequences:
- License suspensions: Your license could be suspended from one month to more than a year depending on the severity of your offense or if your driving record shows a pattern in speeding.
- Bodily injury: Your penalties for hitting someone while speeding are much higher.
- Points: Speeding can easily lead to points on your driver’s record. This could result in expensive fines, suspensions of your license, or even the confiscation of your car. Your car insurance premiums will go up if you have points.
What does a speeding ticket mean for your insurance?
It is clear that speeding can have an impact on your car insurance rates. The average cost for car insurance in is $1674 per annum. If you get a speeding ticket, you could pay $355 more per year to have an average monthly premium of $2,029/month.
State-specific speeding ticket prices
The costs of speeding, which includes penalties and increased car insurance, can vary widely. Below is a list of the states with the highest and most expensive car insurance rates for an additional speeding ticket.
Most expensive states for car insurance after a speeding ticket
We look at your speeding ticket record to determine which state is the most expensive for car insurance. Florida, Louisiana and Michigan are the three most costly states.
After a speeding ticket, which state is the least expensive for car insurance?
Some states have more generous car insurance companies than others. You should still be eligible for cheap car insurance if you get a speeding ticket in Maine or Idaho. You will find lower insurance rates in other states, such as Hawaii, Washington and Vermont, if you speed.
State-specific speeding ticket prices
The penalties for speeding can vary greatly from one state to the next, with some states imposing more severe penalties than others.
Is speeding a misdemeanor, or a crime?
There are many factors that affect how a speeding ticket will be classified. Your jurisdiction will determine whether your speeding offense is an infraction or misdemeanor. Speeding tickets are usually treated as a simple violation or infraction and do not carry any criminal penalties. This includes speeding, as well as other minor offenses like failing to yield, signal, use proper lighting or using your seatbelt.
How your speeding ticket is classified may depend on your driving record and the severity of the incident. Property damage, injury, or death can result in harsher penalties than an accident that has no associated losses. Some states consider reckless driving to be reckless driving if you drive more than the posted speed limit. This could lead to a misdemeanor, or even a felony. You will almost always face harsher consequences if you speed in a school zone. Drivers who have a history of speeding violations or other infractions will face more severe consequences than those with a clean driving record.
There are differences in the way violations are tried in court. Traffic court hears less serious offenses, while criminal court handles more serious offenses. This is subject to change depending on the state and local jurisdiction laws.
Traffic court handles most speeding cases, except for those involving repeat offenders or accidents that result in damages or losses. You can check the local laws to find out how your area treats speeding offenses.
What do I need to hire a speeding ticket lawyer for?
There are pros and cons to hiring a traffic lawyer to help you with your speeding ticket.
North Carolina lawyers Kurtz & Blum say that even a simple traffic ticket can have a significant impact on your life. A good traffic lawyer will save you both time and money. Your insurance premiums could rise by leaps, bounds, if you do not handle them properly. It is unlikely that you will be able to deal with traffic tickets every day unless you are familiar with the specific circumstances.
“A lawyer will be able to find things that the average person cannot find,” Virginia’s Weiland Firm explains. They can spot errors that are not obvious to the average person and will most likely dismiss your ticket. Most people will not notice these errors and they will fight to get their traffic tickets dismissed. This is why it’s so important to hire a lawyer who can help you understand the technicalities of getting your ticket dismissed.
The consequences of your speeding ticket depend on your driving record and personal circumstances. However, a lawyer can help you avoid paying the penalty for many years.