How a Speeding Ticket Impacts Insurance in Alabama

On average, expect rates for car insurance in Alabama to increase by about 20 percent following a speeding ticket. These averages are for full coverage, which includes comprehensive and collision coverage.

Even though you’ve got a speeding ticket on your record, there are still ways to minimize the impact that it has on your car insurance premium:

1. Take a defensive driving course. Get your ticket dismissed by taking a defensive driving course (more details below).
2. Get minimum coverage. If your car is paid off, opting for minimum coverage will lower your premium significantly. However, this could be a risky financial choice in the event that you find yourself in an expensive accident.
3. Improve your credit score. Companies in Alabama are allowed to use your credit score to determine your premium. The higher your credit score is, the lower your premium will be. To improve your credit, take care of any outstanding debt, limit your credit inquiries, and make payments on time.
4. Sign up for a telematics discount. Many car insurance providers like Progressive offer telematics discounts that vary depending on your individual driving style. The safer you drive, the better your savings will be, so it’s worth checking to see if your company offers this incentive.¹

Penalties for speeding differ whether the violation occurred on a state highway or a local road. However, points will remain the same throughout the state.

Points

According to the Alabama Law Enforcement Agency, you can receive two or five points on your driving record for speeding.

Twelve or more points in a two-year period will result in a license suspension of up to one year. While points fall off your record after two years, convictions will remain on your driving record, meaning they can affect insurance but not license suspension.

Commercial drivers have stricter speeding laws compared to those with standard licenses. For commercial drivers, driving 15 miles per hour or more over the posted limit is considered excessive speeding, a serious offense that could result in a disqualification of your license:

• Two serious offenses within a three-year period: 60 days
• Three serious offenses within a three-year period: 120 days

State Fines

The state will handle any speeding on highways that do not fall under municipal law. Fines range from $20 to $40, which is relatively low, or $250 in a construction zone.²

Local Fines

Local fines vary by city or county. Here is a sample from three cities in Alabama: Troy³, Mobile,⁴ and Huntsville.⁵

Racing on Highways

Finally, the state has even stricter penalties for racing on highways.⁶

If you get a speeding ticket, you can plead guilty and get it dismissed or plead not guilty and go to trial.

Plead Guilty

The easiest option is to plead guilty if you believe the speeding ticket was correct. You can pay for your ticket in two ways:

• Online: https://traffic.alacourt.gov/default.aspx
• Phone: 1-877-252-7294⁷

To avoid appearing in court, you can resolve your ticket online through what the state calls the Online Traffic Resolution (OTR) System and attend driving school in the following counties:

Avoid the following traffic violations to keep your driving record points-free and your car insurance premium low.

• Drinking alcohol while operating a vehicle, also known as DUI
• Failure to signal
• Failure to yield the right of way
• Following too closely
• Illegal passing
• Improper lane change
• Improper turn
• Passing a stopped school bus
• Reckless driving⁸

Speeding isn’t just dangerous; it’s illegal and could cost you hundreds or even thousands of dollars. But if you already have a speeding ticket on your record, you can still find cheap car insurance in Alabama with providers like USAA, State Farm, Auto-Owners and others. You may also be able to lower your premiums by taking a defensive driver course, adjusting your coverage, or signing up for a telematics discount.