You were late for an appointment, gunned it down the highway, Smokey clocked you going 30 miles over the posted speed limit and wouldn’t let you off with just a warning… now what do you do?
You could opt to pay the ticket, have points assessed to your record and take the hit to your insurance policy…OR you could hire a traffic attorney. In a previous blog I reviewed other options you could consider to get out of a traffic ticket, but neglected to cover the services a traffic attorney can provide.
I know what you’re thinking: Traffic attorney = $$$!!! Believe it or not, that’s not necessarily the case. In fact, it’s possible to hire a traffic lawyer who can get you out of a ticket for less than the cost of a business lunch. It’s true; in our region (Upper Midwest) some traffic lawyers charge as little as $75. That’s nothing compared to having to shell out $180 for a speeding ticket… and that’s not counting the hit to your insurance premium. According to the National Motorists Association, a simple ticket can raise premiums on your insurance by $100-300 per year. Moreover, if you have multiple vehicles and multiple drivers, it can be of significant consequence.
So who typically hires a traffic attorney? Many people think the ticket gurus are used exclusively by the front engine, roadster style Ferrari owners who feel the need for speed, but don’t want to pay up when they get pulled over. But, according to traffic experts, the attorneys are being hired by a diverse group of motorists from soccer moms to college students. Firms that employ traffic lawyers say they handle up to 1000 tickets a week.
With a statistic like that you are probably wondering: Why not just fight the ticket yourself. Traffic lawyers insist they know how to work the system better than the average motorist. For example, according to traffic experts, most speeders are caught via radar. Traffic lawyers are schooled on the rules and regulations regarding how an officer has to write a radar ticket and will fight to get your traffic violation dismissed.
Sounds great, doesn’t it? Well, slow down. Before you race off to hire a traffic attorney consider this: AAA says there’s no research proving traffic attorneys are more successful than the average Joe. If that information doesn’t deter you and you plan to go the traffic attorney route keep in mind that you have to contact a traffic lawyer within 30 days of getting your ticket, or you could lose your license.
Would you consider hiring a traffic lawyer?