Getting a traffic ticket in California can lead to increased car insurance rates. How much your insurance goes up and for how long depends on several factors, including your driving record, the type of traffic violation, and your insurance company’s policies.
How Traffic Tickets Affect Insurance Rates in California
In California, a single minor traffic ticket like speeding or running a stop sign will typically affect your insurance rates for 3 years from the date of conviction. More serious violations like reckless driving or DUI can impact your rates for much longer.
Most insurers will review your driving record when your policy is up for renewal. If you have any new tickets or violations, they may increase your premium. Typically, the more recent the ticket, the greater the rate increase will be.
For example, a recent speeding ticket may cause a 20-30% bump in your premium, while a ticket that is a couple years old may only cause a few percent increase. But even old tickets can still impact your rates years down the road.
How Much Rates Increase After a Ticket
There are no set rules on how much your insurance will go up after a ticket in California. Each insurance company calculates rates differently based on their own underwriting guidelines. However, some general guidelines include:
- Minor speeding ticket (15 mph over limit) – Average increase of 15-25%
- Moderate speeding ticket (16-29 mph over) – Average increase of 20-45%
- Major speeding violation (30+ mph over) – Average increase of 30-50%
- Reckless driving – Average increase of 50-100%
- DUI – Average increase of 100-200%
Rates can increase more substantially if you have multiple tickets on your record. For example, three speeding tickets may increase your rates by 50-75% or more.
How Long a Ticket Affects Your Insurance in California
In California, most traffic violations will impact your insurance rates for 3 years from the conviction date. However, some more serious tickets can affect rates longer:
- Regular traffic tickets – 3 years
- Reckless driving convictions – 5 years
- DUI convictions – 10 years
- Tickets involving an accident – 3 to 5 years
- Tickets for drivers under 18 – 5 years
So if you get a speeding ticket today, it will likely impact your insurance rates for the next 3 renewal periods. But an old DUI from 7 years ago could still raise your rates today.
How to Reduce the Impact of Tickets on Insurance
There are a few things you can do to reduce the rate increase after a ticket in California:
- Avoid further violations – Multiple tickets will lead to much higher increases
- Take a defensive driving course – This can help offset some rate hikes
- Shop for cheaper insurance – Compare quotes to find the best rate
- Increase deductibles – Higher deductibles generally lower premiums
- Improve credit score – Insurers use credit-based insurance scores
After 3 years of clean driving, the ticket will drop off your driving record, and your rates should go back down at renewal time. But even old violations can get flagged in background checks and impact your premiums.
How Insurance Companies View Tickets
While most insurers use 3-year and 5-year windows for rate impacts, some take a more aggressive approach when underwriting policies:
Insurance Company | Ticket Rate Impact Policy |
---|---|
Geico | 3 years for most violations |
Allstate | 3 years, but may impact up to 5 years |
State Farm | 3 years for most violations |
Progressive | 3 years, up to 5 years for major violations |
USAA | Up to 5 years for all violations |
Some insurers like USAA and Allstate admit to looking at your full driving history when calculating rates. So even very old tickets can still increase your premium.
Should I Contest a Traffic Ticket to Avoid Insurance hikes?
There are a few options if you receive a traffic ticket in California and want to avoid increased insurance rates:
- Contest the ticket in court – If you can get the ticket dismissed or reduced to a non-moving violation, it won’t go on your driving record and won’t impact your insurance.
- Request traffic school – Completing traffic school prevents the DMV from adding a point to your license for most 1-point violations. It still shows up on your record though.
- Negotiate with the prosecutor – They may agree to reduce the offense to one that doesn’t affect insurance, like a parking violation.
- Hire a traffic ticket lawyer – An attorney may have better luck negotiating with the courts to reduce the ticket severity or have it dismissed.
Contesting a ticket takes effort, but it can be worthwhile to avoid higher premiums. Just make sure you weigh the time and legal costs versus the potential insurance rate increase.
Can I Switch Insurance Companies After a Ticket?
After receiving a traffic citation in California, you may consider switching insurers to find a lower rate. There are a few things to keep in mind:
- The ticket will still be visible on your DMV record, so most insurers will factor it into your premium.
- Each company may weigh the ticket violation differently in their underwriting process.
- New customer and loyalty discounts can help offset some rate increases after a ticket.
- Shop around with multiple insurers to compare quotes after a violation.
In some cases, you may be able to find a new insurer that still offers you a better rate increase than your current company. But there are no guarantees that switching will lead to lower premiums.
Will Taking a Defensive Driving Course Help?
Completing a California DMV-approved defensive driving course can provide a couple benefits after getting a traffic ticket:
- You can get the ticket dismissed by the court if it qualifies for traffic school.
- Insurers may provide a discount for 3 years for taking a defensive driving course.
- Your overall driving skills and behavior improve, reducing risk of future tickets.
So taking a class like this can both help remove a ticket from your record if completed quickly, while also demonstrating efforts to improve your driving. Together this can minimize the rate increase you see from insurers.
Tips to Reduce Insurance Impacts of Tickets
Here are some other tips California drivers can follow to help limit rate increases after receiving a traffic ticket:
- Avoid further tickets – Multiple violations lead to much higher premium hikes.
- Increase deductibles – Higher deductibles can help counter rate increases.
- Improve credit score – California allows credit-based insurance scores.
- Ask about discounts – Taking defensive driving courses or bundling policies can help.
- Shop around – Compare quotes from other insurers when policy is up.
Following good driving practices, improving your credit, and shopping around for insurance can help minimize the pain of increased premiums after a citation.
Conclusion
Receiving a traffic ticket in California can lead to increased car insurance rates for 3 to 5 years typically. Minor violations may increase annual premiums by 15-25%, while major tickets can cause hikes of 50% or more. Having multiple recent tickets can compound rate increases quickly.
The best ways to limit rate hikes after a citation are to maintain a clean driving record, take defensive driving courses, improve your credit score, increase deductibles, and compare rates from multiple insurers. While traffic tickets can be expensive in terms of fines and insurance costs, being a safe and responsible driver can keep your rates low even if you have a minor violation on your record.