How a Speeding Ticket Impacts Your Insurance in New York

On average, across all car insurance companies, your premium for New York car insurance will increase in price by 13 percent after a speeding ticket hits your driving record. However, there are ways to get a 10 percent reduction on your liability/collision coverage, as you’ll see below.

Here’s one surefire way to find cheap New York car insurance with a speeding ticket on your record.

Complete the Point & Insurance Reduction Program

If you have 11 or more points on your record and want to avoid a license suspension and lower your car insurance premiums, participate in the state-approved Point & Insurance Reduction Program (PIRP). While the points and tickets won’t technically be removed from your driving record, you will lose four points for a suspension, and you can save 10 percent on liability and collision premiums for a period of three years.

Classes are 320 minutes long, and the fee varies by provider. Once you’ve completed the course, send the completion certificate to your insurance provider within 90 days to receive the discount. Find a provider via the links below:

• Classroom provider: https://dmv.ny.gov/pirp/classroom
• Online or alternative provider: https://dmv.ny.gov/pirp/online²

Speeding in New York can cost you hundreds of dollars in fines, imprisonment, and points on your driving record, even if you were driving less than 10 miles per hour (mph) over the limit.³

Fines will be increased if you have more than one speeding violation in the past 18 months, and your license will be revoked for three convictions in the same time period. Note that the penalties vary in school speed zones and restricted highways, and you may have to pay a state surcharge in addition to your fine. You could also have to pay a Driver Responsibility Assessment (DRA) if you garner six or more points in an 18-month period.

With the DRA, you’ll pay a fine over a three-year period, typically $100 per year for a total of $300. For every point over six, you’ll pay $25 to $75. You can pay your DRA at your DMV office or by mailing a check to the following address:

• DRA Processing Center
• State Office Building
• P.O. Box 359
• Utica, NY 13503

For red light or speed camera violations that occur in New York City, you’ll pay $50, plus $25 if the ticket is 30 days overdue, and 9 percent interest after 75 days, plus one-twelfth of this interest until you pay the judgment.⁴

If you get a speeding ticket, you’ll most likely want to plead guilty and pay for it. However, that process will look different depending on where you were speeding: in any of New York City’s five boroughs or outside of NYC.

Tickets in New York City

You can pay NYC tickets online through the Department of Motor Vehicles (DMV) Traffic Violations Bureau (TBV), accessible at https://dmv.ny.gov/how-pay-driver-responsibility-assessment. However, the TBV does not handle the following:

• Local tickets
• Parking tickets
• Red light or speed camera tickets
• Felony offenses like driving under the influence (DUI)
• Misdemeanor offenses

For speeding tickets you want to fight, you don’t have to appear in person at the hearing. Instead, you can submit a digital statement. Learn more at https://nysdmv.custhelp.com/app/vo/sipopa?_ga=2.236146945.1635631899.1688563574-1904031508.1688563574.

After the hearing, you’ll receive the court’s decision via email.

If you want to appeal a conviction, you can do so within 30 days by paying a $10 appeal fee and completing an online form at https://transact2.dmv.ny.gov/WebAppeals/?_ga=2.71350419.1635631899.1688563574-1904031508.1688563574.

Or you can appeal via mail by sending payment and the form to the below address:

• DMV Appeals Board
• P.O. Box 2935
• Albany, NY  12220-0935

Again, you’ll receive a letter with your appeal status.

Tickets Outside of New York City

For violations that occur outside of NYC, you’ll pay your ticket or file an appeal with the local court of the village, county, city, or town in which you were ticketed. You can find the local court at https://www.nycourts.gov/courts/.

Make sure to respond to your ticket, whether that’s with a guilty, not guilty, or no contest plea. If you ignore it, the state will suspend your driver’s license, and you’ll have to pay $70 to end the suspension, plus the ticket fee. You could also face higher auto insurance costs. Learn how a license suspension affects insurance.

In addition to speeding, avoid the following traffic violations to keep your car insurance rates low in the Empire State:

• Failure to signal
• Improper cell phone use, like texting and driving, otherwise known as distracted driving
• Improper turn
• Not stopping for a school bus
• Not yielding the right-of-way
• Reckless driving
• Tinted window
• Driving without a license
• Unregistered
• Leaving the scene of an accident

Speed limits are put in place to keep you and other drivers, not to mention pedestrians and cyclists, safe. Even though they may seem frustrating, following posted limits could save you a huge hassle and keep your hard-earned money in your pocket. Learn more about speeding, like how long a speeding ticket stays on your record, in our frequently asked questions below.