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Last updated: September 19, 2023

How a Speeding Ticket Impacts Insurance in South Carolina

In South Carolina, speeding was involved in 41 percent of motor vehicle deaths in 2021.

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Aliza Vigderman, Director of Content

Speeding in South Carolina can result in hundreds of dollars in fines (or thousands if you speed in highway work zones), imprisonment, and higher car insurance costs. Of course, it’s also dangerous. In 2021, 4 out of every 10 people who died in a car crash in the state were in a car that was speeding, a total of 486 speeding-related deaths, according to the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration. Let’s learn more about the impact of speeding in the Palmetto State.

How a Speeding Ticket Impacts Your Insurance in South Carolina

At $1,113 annually on average, South Carolinians pay the 15th-highest rates in the nation for car insurance, per the most recent data.1 Expect to pay about 20 percent more than that after getting a speeding ticket — around $1,336 for full-coverage car insurance in South Carolina. In fact, if you receive a speeding ticket, it will raise your car insurance premium for as long as the violation stays on your driving record.

While speeding tickets and other moving violations affect your car insurance rates, as will anything related to your driving history, auto insurance premiums are based on more than just your driving record. That’s why it’s important to get an insurance quote from more than one insurance agent. You should compare quotes to see what your car insurance costs would be with various car insurance companies.

How to Find Cheap Insurance After Speeding

Here are five ways to lower car insurance costs after a speeding violation.

Take a Defensive Driving Course

If you want to get four points removed from your record, one option is to take an eight-hour defensive driving course through the National Safety Council or at a South Carolina Department of Motor Vehicles-approved driving school.

 

NOTE:

You can take the course only once every three years.

Buy Minimum Coverage

The cheapest option would be to buy only the state’s minimum limits of liability coverage for other parties in accidents you cause, as well as accidents caused by people driving without insurance.

  • Bodily injury liability: $25,000 per person, $50,000 per accident
  • Property damage liability: $25,000 per accident
  • Uninsured motorist bodily injury coverage: $25,000 per person, $50,000 per accident
  • Uninsured motorist property damage coverage: $25,000 per accident2

Raise Your Credit Score

South Carolina companies charge more for car insurance for people with bad credit, as it’s an indicator of future claims. By raising your credit score, you can lower your car insurance premium at your next renewal.

Bundle Policies

If you already have home and auto insurance or another type of policy along with auto, bundling them under the same provider can get you discounts on both.

Join the Associated Auto Insurers Plan of South Carolina

As a high-risk driver, you may have trouble finding a provider that will accept you. If that’s the case and it’s been 60 days of trying and failing to get car insurance in the state, then you can join the Associated Auto Insurers Plan of South Carolina (AAIPSC), which all the state’s licensed insurance providers must participate in. Either contact an agent directly or contact someone from the plan.

  • Phone: 866-560-4100; Monday through Friday, 8:30 a.m. through 4:30 p.m. ET
  • Fax: 401-528-1361
  • Mailing address: 
    • Associated Auto Insurers Plan of South Carolina
    • 302 Central Ave.
    • Johnston, RI 02919
  • Email address: aaipsc@aipso.com3

Penalties for Speeding in South Carolina

Penalties for speeding violations on highways fall to the state government, while the consequences for violations on local roads fall to the city or municipality.

Highways

You could face a fine of anywhere from $15 to $200 for speeding on a state highway, plus up to 30 days of imprisonment for going 25 miles per hour (mph) or more over the posted speed limit.4 You’ll also earn anywhere from two to six points on your driving record. Rack up 12 or more points and you’ll face a driver’s license suspension as well.5

Miles per hour (mph) over speed limit Minimum fine (first offense) Maximum fine (first offense) Points on your driving record Length of imprisonment
Less than 10 $15 $25 2 0
10-15 $25 $50 4 0
15-25 $50 $75 4 0
25 or more $75 $200 6 30 days maximum

Highway Work Zones

Fines are steeper in highway work zones, $500 to $1,000, even if you didn’t cause anyone physical injury. However, if your speeding was the sole, proximate cause of a physical injury, you’d pay a $1,000 to $2,000 fine or $2,000 to $5,000 for great bodily injury. You’ll also get two to four points on your record in either case. Great bodily injury causes:

  • Substantial risk of death
  • Serious, permanent disfigurement
  • Protected loss or impairment of the function of a bodily organ or member6

Local Roads

Fines for speeding on local roads will depend on the municipality or city where the violation took place. Let’s use Summerville, South Carolina, as an example. Here’s how much you’d pay for a speeding ticket for driving a certain number of mph over the limit, including court costs:

  • 1 to 10: $76.88
  • 11 to 15: $128.75
  • 16 to 24: $180.50
  • 25 or more: $355
  • Too fast for conditions: $155

Options Post-Speeding Ticket

Once you get a speeding ticket, you can either pay it or appear in court. In some cases, you may have to do both.

Pay Ticket

You can pay online for all state tickets and some city/municipality tickets at https://sc.gov/court-payments.

The counties that accept online payments are as follows:

  • Abbeville
  • Allendale
  • Anderson
  • Aiken
  • Bamberg
  • Barnwell
  • Beaufort
  • Berkeley
  • Calhoun
  • Charleston
  • Chester
  • Chesterfield
  • Cherokee
  • Colleton
  • Darlington
  • Dillon
  • Dorchester
  • Edgefield
  • Fairfield
  • Florence
  • Georgetown
  • Greenville
  • Greenwood
  • Hampton
  • Horry
  • Jasper
  • Kershaw
  • Lancaster
  • Laurens
  • Lee
  • Lexington
  • Marion
  • Marlboro
  • McCormick
  • Oconee
  • Newberry
  • Orangeburg
  • Pickens
  • Richland
  • Saluda
  • Spartanburg
  • Sumter
  • Union
  • Williamsburg
  • York

The municipalities that accept online payments are as follows:

  • Andrews
  • Anderson
  • Aiken
  • Aynor
  • Barnwell
  • Belton
  • Blacksburg
  • Blackville
  • Bluffton
  • Branchville
  • Central
  • Chapin
  • Charleston
  • Clover
  • Columbia
  • Conway
  • Cowpens
  • Due West
  • Duncan
  • Fairfax
  • Florence
  • Folly Beach
  • Fort Mill
  • Fountain Inn
  • Georgetown
  • Hardeeville
  • Harleyville
  • Irmo
  • Isle of Palms
  • Jamestown
  • Landrum
  • Lyman
  • Moncks Corner
  • Mount Pleasant
  • Myrtle Beach
  • Norris
  • North
  • North Augusta
  • North Charleston
  • North Myrtle Beach
  • Pendleton
  • Ridgeland
  • Rock Hill
  • Saluda
  • Santee
  • Sullivan’s Island
  • Summerton
  • Summerville
  • Sumter
  • Surfside Beach
  • Tega Cay
  • Walterboro
  • Ware Shoals
  • West Pelzer
  • Westminster
  • Williston
  • Winnsboro
  • Woodruff
  • Yemassee

FYI:

The city of Clarendon and the municipality of Greenville no longer accept online payments as of June 2023.

Unless your ticket says you must appear in court, you won’t need to do anything else after you’ve paid the fine.

Appear in Court

However, if you want to plead not guilty, or your ticket says you must appear in court, then you’ll have to appear. If you plead not guilty, you’ll have the option for a bench trial before the judge or a jury trial, which you can request at your first appearance.

Failure to appear in court or pay your bond will still result in a trial, just without your presence. And if you don’t pay your bond within 15 days of your absence, there will be a warrant issued for your arrest, and your driver’s license will be suspended until you pay the bond amount and the DMV reinstatement fee.7

More Traffic Violations That Affect Insurance

In addition to never speeding, avoid these traffic violations to keep your insurance premium low:

  • Disregarding a stop sign or traffic signal
  • Driving on the wrong side of the road
  • Failure to dim lights, yield the right of way, give a proper signal, etc.
  • Hit-and-run
  • Improper backing, parking, passing, starting, or turning
  • Passing a stopped school bus
  • Reckless driving8

Recap

As long as a speeding ticket stays on your record, you’ll see higher car insurance rates. That’s why we recommend taking a defensive driving course to get some points removed from your record, along with always following the posted speed limits in the future.

Frequently Asked Questions

Do two points affect insurance in South Carolina?

Yes, two points can affect insurance in South Carolina. You can get two points on your record for:

  • Backing up improperly
  • Driving in an improper lane
  • Driving above the posted speed limit
  • Failing to dim your lights
  • Operating a vehicle with improper lights or unsafe conditions
  • Parking improperly/dangerously
  • Running a red light
  • Changing lanes without safety precaution

How long does it take for a speeding ticket to fall off in South Carolina?

Half of your speeding ticket points will vanish one year after your violation date. From there, you can take a defensive driving course to get up to four points removed. You can take such a course only once every three years.

Do speed camera tickets affect insurance rates in South Carolina?

Speed camera tickets do not affect insurance rates in South Carolina, as photographic evidence would require an officer to “personally [observe]” the offense. However, evidence from a speed camera can be used along with a law enforcement officer’s testimony, according to the South Carolina Code of Laws Section 56-7-35.

Citations

  1. 2019/2020 Auto Insurance Database Report. National Association of Insurance Commissioners. (2023, Jan).
    https://content.naic.org/sites/default/files/publication-aut-pb-auto-insurance-database.pdf

  2. Automobile Insurance. South Carolina Department of Insurance. (2023).
    https://www.doi.sc.gov/588/Automobile-Insurance

  3. Associated Auto Insurers Plan of South Carolina. AiPSA. (2023).
    https://www.aipso.com/Plan-Sites/Associated-Auto-Insurers-Plan-of-South-Carolina

  4. 2022 South Carolina Code of Laws Title 56. JUSTIA US Law. (2022).
    https://law.justia.com/codes/south-carolina/2022/title-56/chapter-5/section-56-5-1520/

  5. The Point System. Branchville South Carolina. (2023).
    https://branchville.sc.gov/sites/branchville/files/Documents/Court/The%20Point%20System.pdf

  6. South Carolina Code of Laws Unannotated. South Carolina Legislature. (2023).
    https://www.scstatehouse.gov/code/t16c025.php

  7. City of Aiken Traffic Tickets. City of Aiken. (2023).
    https://www.cityofaikensc.gov/traffic-tickets/

  8. Fines. Summerville South Carolina. (2023).
    https://www.summervillesc.gov/243/Fines

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