Memphis Traffic Ticket Lawyer on: Accidents and Points

If you’ve received a citation for being in a traffic accident in Memphis you may be worried about receiving points against your license. The more serious the violation, the more you get. Too many points in a certain period of time can result in your license being suspended. Traffic accident points are handled a little differently than other violations, such as speeding or failing to use a turn signal. For all non-accident violations you will get points only if you are convicted. Thus if the charge is dismissed there are no points, because it is never reported to the Department of Safety. However, if it’s an accident, you are automatically looking at points because the accident report will be immediately sent to the Department. This is a separate process than going to court or having a lawyer handle the case. You should still get a lawyer to handle your ticket because you could face increased punishment if convicted of the offense, but the initial reporting of the accident by the police will result in automatic points. That’s not something the court or your lawyer can change. Most minor traffic accidents will result in three points, so if you’re in an accident that’s determined to be your fault that is about how many points you’ll be getting on your record. It takes 12 points in a one-year period to be at risk of losing your license. You can’t do anything about those initial “report” points, but you want to be sure you don’t get any more on your record when you go to court. Patrick Stegall is a Memphis traffic ticket lawyer. He helps people keep points off their record so they can keep driving. If you’re worried about having points added to your license, contact him at (901) 205-9894 or by email at pstegall@stegall-law.com.