There is never a good time to find yourself pulled over on the side of the road by a police officer. Not only can this slow down your entire day, but it can bring a variety of challenges into your life.
While you can do your best to talk the officer out of issuing a traffic ticket, there is no guarantee that it’ll work.
So, if you find yourself with a traffic ticket in hand, you have two options:
- Pay the ticket and deal with any repercussions that arise
- Fight the traffic ticket with hopes of having it dismissed
One of the first things you should do is learn more about why you were pulled over. This will help you understand if you truly broke the law, or if the officer made some type of mistake.
If you have any doubts about whether you can successfully fight the ticket, you shouldn’t pay the fine just yet.
If you decide to fight the ticket, you should implement a strategy that puts you in the best position for success. Here are some things to think about:
- If the officer doesn’t show up in court, it almost always leads to an automatic dismissal of your ticket. Of course, there is no way of knowing if the officer will show up, so you can’t rely on this.
- You can challenge a speeding ticket by arguing that the radar gun was faulty, maybe because it was not recalibrated as required.
- Check for errors. At first, you may not notice anything wrong with your traffic ticket. However, as you review it, you may come across one or more minor errors. This can include things such as the misspelling of your name or an inaccuracy regarding your violation. These types of errors can lead to a dismissal of your ticket
There are times when you should pay a traffic ticket, times when you should fight back, and times when you should consider the benefits of attending traffic school.
Understanding your ticket and legal rights will help you decidewhich path to follow.