If you are cited by an officer while driving in Indiana, you may feel tempted to simply write a check and mail it to the local court. However, it may actually be in your best interest to fight the citation even if you can afford to pay it. This is because a citation on your driving record might increase your insurance rates or even result in a license suspension.
How a ticket impacts insurance rates
A citation for any type of offense implies that you exercise poor judgment while operating a motor vehicle. While this isn’t necessarily true, your insurance company may believe that you are likely to offend again in the future. You may also be seen as having a higher risk of getting into an accident or otherwise filing a claim on your policy. Ultimately, the premium that you pay every six months is likely to go up if you decide to plead guilty to a citation.
How a citation impacts your license
Most states put points on your license each time you are convicted of a traffic violation. If you get too many points in a short enough period of time, you could be subject to a license suspension or revocation. Therefore, even if you are cited for a relatively minor offense, your track record may make fighting a traffic ticket worth your while.
Save some money
Surcharges and other fees can add hundreds of dollars to the overall cost of a citation. Therefore, going to court to have a ticket dismissed or reduced may outweigh the cost of taking the day off of work, paying a babysitter and other potential losses related to doing so.
There are several methods that you may use in your quest to overturn a traffic ticket. Those tactics may include arguing that there was no probable cause for a traffic stop or that you engaged in illegal activity in an effort to prevent something worse from happening. Pictures or videos taken at the scene of a traffic stop may also help you obtain a favorable outcome.
