Not doing too good with speeding tickets lately

[DonIago]

Have you tried -not- speeding?

I set my cruise control to 5 MPH over the limit,

Um...that's also speeding.

True, but it doesn't usually (in my experience anyway) result in tickets.

Actually, the last time I had any sort of speeding incident was 8 years ago, when I got a Warning. That was after I hadn't been driving for over a week and was probably feeling a bit cocky...and hadn't slept well the night before.

 

[Tiberius Jim]

I've been pulled over three times in my driving "career", but have only received one ticket. The first was when I was about 18 on New Years Eve at about 6:00pm. I was driving home from work, in a pack of cars in the passing lane. I was passing, and keeping pace with the other cars in the lane when I see a motorcycle California Highway Patrol light 'em up. I get over to the right lane when I can to let him by...except he stays right with me. Crap. I pull over to the side of the road. So does he. Double crap. He takes his sweet time to approach, and asks for the standard license and reg. He then asks "In a hurry to get somewhere?" and I stupidly said "Yeah, just got off of work" Basically just admitted to speeding. He claimed he clocked me doing 80 in a 65, even though I was in a big group of cars. Thinking back I seem to remember the other cars were sedans, minivans, SUVs...and I was in my flashy coupe...and 18. Ended up getting the ticket, paid it and did online traffic school.

The second time I was alone on a main stretch in town on the way to work. Totally lost track of my speed, wound up at around 60 in a 45. Got stopped by a city cop. This time I was older and wiser, and when the officer asked if I knew how fast I was going I honestly told him that I didn't. He goes back to his car for what seemed like ages...comes back and says "Well, your record is clean and I see you're from around here and should know better so...I'll just be giving you a warning today. Slow down from now on." I thanked him profusely and went on my way feeling like the luckiest guy in the world.

The third and last time I was taking my new truck for a drive with a good friend to her birthday party. I was far from home and didn't know the area and was going about 10 mph over the limit. It was a long straight two lane road out in the middle of nowhere, so an easy place to let your speed get away from you. I get pulled over by CHP, and up walks an incredibly attractive female officer. She asks for my paperwork, lets me know what she clocked me at and heads back to her car. My friend exclaims, while the officer was still within earshot "I can't believe this, on my birthday of all days" When the officer came back, she asked my friend if it really was her birthday, which she proved with her ID. She then asked my friend if she thought I should get a ticket or just a warning, and my friend of course went for the latter. So, it was her birthday but endedup getting a pretty good gift of not getting a ticket.

 

[enlisted person]

I don't know what the deal is, but I've been getting speeding tickets lately. I've got 2 speeding tickets within 2 months time. I just got one today. Was going 71 in a 55, yes 16 MPH over the speed limit. In my defense, I was in a rental car (use to driving an SUV) and I had a sports car for my rental (car is in the shop), and I was traveling downhill down the mountain today on a new section of road they have paved that is much wider and smoother now, and there was no traffic or cars around me. In that car, on that road, the speed I was traveling felt very comfortable, it didn't feel like I was going as fast as I was, and I wasn't even looking at the speedometer, and I didn't know that section was 55 MPH.


So, 71 I was going in that section, and there was a State Trooper on the other side of the road passing by me, he turned on his lights, slowed down and turned around in the road and as soon as he did that I knew my butt was his. I quickly pulled over and knew I had no excuses, he caught me fair and square.

Problem is, I just got another speeding ticket a couple of months ago, in a different county on a different road, but I wasn't going as fast, and so I'm kinda worried now about the points on my license. He didn't get me a "ticket" that I can just pay off. He said I have to go to court on October 18th and see what the DA says.

So now I have to show up to court on the 18th and see what is going to happen. Here in NC going 15MPH over the speed limit over 55MPH can get you your license taken away for 30 days. And, if I already have points on my license from the other speeding ticket, this one could add up to a high number that may require me to take some kind of class or have some kind of probation time or something.

I'm pretty worried about it. I think my last speeding ticket prior to these two has to be 10 years ago! So its been quite a while, but all the sudden I've got a couple in a short amount of time and the point system is pretty strict here.

I have gotten like one ticket in the last 5 years and the last 3 did not count against my insurance nor my license. I have had something like 25 tickets in all. I think the trick is to not get tickets but if you do, then find a lawyer and he can take care of it. It certainly beats the consequences of the ticket in higher insurance and missing a day of work to talk to the DA or whatever. They can't make it go away but they can get it reduced to court costs and some obscure violation that doesn't count against you. I would seek this before just paying a ticket.

 

[Captain_Nick]

I don't think Nick was criticising the use of language, he was mocking the attitude that passing 6 cars in the rain is dangerous by trivialising it as a simple manoeuvre that anyone should be able to execute.

Thank you, that's what I was doing. Only I wouldn't say that anyone could execute it, while it is simple 'in theory', in the hands of lesser drivers it is also quite dangerous.

 

[RoJoHen]

I have gotten like one ticket in the last 5 years and the last 3 did not count against my insurance nor my license. I have had something like 25 tickets in all. I think the trick is to not get tickets but if you do, then find a lawyer and he can take care of it. It certainly beats the consequences of the ticket in higher insurance and missing a day of work to talk to the DA or whatever. They can't make it go away but they can get it reduced to court costs and some obscure violation that doesn't count against you. I would seek this before just paying a ticket.

Wouldn't you then have to pay the lawyer? Doesn't really seem worth it to me. How much could a speeding ticket possibly cost?

Just don't speed that much!

 

[BolianAuthor]

I prefer "overtaking" to "passing" any day... overtaking sounds much more aggressive and cooler. Passing almost sounds weak in comparison. By the same token, "autostrada" sounds a lot cooler than "highway".

 

[DonIago]

I'm sorry officer, I was attempting to overtake my fellow perambulator on the autostrada and must have neglected to pay full and proper dilligence to my velocimeter.

...somehow I don't think that would fly...

 

[Captain_Nick]

I tried to get away with going 27kph over with 'I'm sorry officer, I was trying to overtake somebody that was speeding.'

It didnt work

 

[Ar-Pharazon]

I'm sorry officer, I was attempting to overtake my fellow perambulator on the autostrada and must have neglected to pay full and proper dilligence to my velocimeter.

...somehow I don't think that would fly...

That would get you a sobriety test for sure.

 

[Kirby]

I've seen a lot of people get pulled over in front of our office lately. I suspect the city is just trying to raise some additional revenue.

 

[Alidar Jarok]

I prefer "overtaking" to "passing" any day... overtaking sounds much more aggressive and cooler. Passing almost sounds weak in comparison. By the same token, "autostrada" sounds a lot cooler than "highway".

What are we talking of? Baseball?

 

[Marie1]

I "keep up with the flow of traffic."

Actually, it was mentioned years ago in drivers ed that the reason speed limits here are so low is that everyone drives 10KPH above them, so if they were raised, everyone would go 10 KPH above that. I find that a bit... well, there must be a lot more to it... I don't keep exactly to the limit, but I've never gotten a ticket or even a warning.

The worst I've had is a cop flash his lights for a second at me one night when I went from highway-ish to city street and hadn't quite slowed down enough (and I was playing with the radio so maybe weaving a bit which is bad).

 

[enlisted person]

I have gotten like one ticket in the last 5 years and the last 3 did not count against my insurance nor my license. I have had something like 25 tickets in all. I think the trick is to not get tickets but if you do, then find a lawyer and he can take care of it. It certainly beats the consequences of the ticket in higher insurance and missing a day of work to talk to the DA or whatever. They can't make it go away but they can get it reduced to court costs and some obscure violation that doesn't count against you. I would seek this before just paying a ticket.

Wouldn't you then have to pay the lawyer? Doesn't really seem worth it to me. How much could a speeding ticket possibly cost?

Just don't speed that much!

You do have to pay the lawyer but they can get the fine reduced and that pays most of their fee and then you don't miss any work and no rise in insurance for 3 years. In my state one ticket over 10mph of the speed limit gets you a 45% increase in premiums. Get it reduced to 9 over or less and it doesn't count unless you get another one within that 3 years. You give $200 to a lawyer, he gets $100 knocked of the fine and the speed reduced to 9 over and for $100 you don't get that 45% increase over 3 years.

 

[RoJoHen]

I have gotten like one ticket in the last 5 years and the last 3 did not count against my insurance nor my license. I have had something like 25 tickets in all. I think the trick is to not get tickets but if you do, then find a lawyer and he can take care of it. It certainly beats the consequences of the ticket in higher insurance and missing a day of work to talk to the DA or whatever. They can't make it go away but they can get it reduced to court costs and some obscure violation that doesn't count against you. I would seek this before just paying a ticket.

Wouldn't you then have to pay the lawyer? Doesn't really seem worth it to me. How much could a speeding ticket possibly cost?

Just don't speed that much!

You do have to pay the lawyer but they can get the fine reduced and that pays most of their fee and then you don't miss any work and no rise in insurance for 3 years. In my state one ticket over 10mph of the speed limit gets you a 45% increase in premiums. Get it reduced to 9 over or less and it doesn't count unless you get another one within that 3 years. You give $200 to a lawyer, he gets $100 knocked of the fine and the speed reduced to 9 over and for $100 you don't get that 45% increase over 3 years.

Yikes, your state is hardcore.

I got a ticket for going 17MPH over the limit, and all I got was a $70 fine. It had absolutely no affect on my insurance.

 

[Captain Ice]

Wouldn't you then have to pay the lawyer? Doesn't really seem worth it to me. How much could a speeding ticket possibly cost?

Just don't speed that much!

You do have to pay the lawyer but they can get the fine reduced and that pays most of their fee and then you don't miss any work and no rise in insurance for 3 years. In my state one ticket over 10mph of the speed limit gets you a 45% increase in premiums. Get it reduced to 9 over or less and it doesn't count unless you get another one within that 3 years. You give $200 to a lawyer, he gets $100 knocked of the fine and the speed reduced to 9 over and for $100 you don't get that 45% increase over 3 years.

Yikes, your state is hardcore.

I got a ticket for going 17MPH over the limit, and all I got was a $70 fine. It had absolutely no affect on my insurance.

I agree. When I've shopped insurance companies over here, I've been pretty consistently told that unless what I did was pretty grievous, they pretty much ignore the first ticket.

 

[DonIago]

The last time I got a speeding ticket I got it reduced to the deliciously vague, "Failure to obey vehicle/traffic law".

When I applied for insurance in a different state a few years later over the internet they didn't even have that offense listed. Heh.