NC Traffic Law Blog

Navigating North Carolina traffic laws can get complicated, confusing, and if you’re unfortunate enough to get a ticket, downright stressful. So we’ve put together a list of 6 things EVERY North Carolina driver should know about their ticket.

1. Paying off a speeding ticket may suspend your license.

• Yes, really. While it might seem like the easiest way to resolve a citation, paying off your ticket can often lead to more serious repercussions than just a simple fine. Doing so can put points on your license, cause an increase in your insurance rate, and even outright suspend your driver’s license, sometimes for up to one full year!
• We recommend consulting with a traffic attorney before taking any action with your ticket. If you have a ticket you want to talk to someone about, give us a call at (919) 200-0822 or email us today.
  

2. Some tickets can be dismissed or reduced with the help of a traffic attorney.

• Many people freeze up or feel intimidated about dealing with attorneys, and sometimes for good reason. However, the right traffic attorney can not only provide insight and guidance on dealing with your ticket, they can also often seek to reduce or even dismiss your charges!
  
• Reductions and dismissals can save you points on your license, stop insurance rates from increasing, prevent your license from being suspended, and even keep charges from appearing on your criminal record. Not to mention the headaches and stress they can relieve.
  

3. If you lose your ticket, you can find it online.

• Lose your ticket? No need to panic. Find it online with your first and last name at the NC courts website and it will tell you the time, location, and charges of your court date. You can also find out information about your speed, and charges by calling the courthouse of the county the ticket is from.
  
• Having trouble? You can also try finding your case on our website, or give us a call at (919) 200-0822 and we’ll find it for you!
  

4. If you don’t hire an attorney, you may have to appear in court for your traffic ticket

• Aside from some low level offenses, North Carolina law often requires that you appear in court if you received a ticket. For a lot of people, especially those from out of state or who live far from the courthouse, appearing in court can be daunting and often means you will have to take the day off of work.
  
• Thankfully, if you receive a ticket and do not wish to appear, it is often possible to hire an attorney to appear on your behalf.
  

5. Ignoring a ticket could get you arrested and suspend your license.

• That ticket you got a few months ago and forgot about? It might just suspend your license if it’s not dealt with properly. A “failure to appear” (FTA) will typically be given to cases that are not dealt with after 20 days from their court date.
  
• Having an FTA will likely lead to your license being suspended indefinitely, and you typically won’t be eligible to reinstate it until the case is resolved. If you’re unsure whether you have an FTA or not, you can try checking your MyDMV profile, or give the DMV a call directly at (919) 715-7000.
  
• If you know that you have an FTA (or several) and need help resolving it, give us a call at (919) 200-0822 or email us, and we’ll let you know how we might be able to help!
  

6. Hiring an attorney for your ticket can actually save you money.

• Who doesn’t love saving money? Not only can an attorney help you save money, they can help you save a LOT of it. Based on the average family insurance policy, some reductions could save you up to $1600. That’s a lot of money saved, especially if your representation fee is only $99 as it is with most cases at iTicket.law 😉.