Minimizing the Real Cost of a Speeding Ticket-Part III

In Parts I and II of this series we discussed the immediate effects of a speeding ticket as it relates to auto insurance cost and driving privileges, fines and penalties associated with the accumulation of “points” on a license.  Part III was going to be about all the things you can do to mitigate or eliminate the negative effects of tickets.  Shortly after posting the first two articles, I received an email from a business associate Tom Meilutis of Northwestern Mutual.  Tom recommended that I spend a few minutes writing about some of the not-so-obvious negative effects.  So, before I move on to mitigation here’s a bit more potentially bad news.  

     Your driving record will matter when it comes to securing life insurance and disability insurance.  Even a single ticket can dramatically affect the rates you pay for insurance or even worse the ability to qualify at all.  Life insurers understand that more than 100 people die each day on the roads in the United States.  Life insurance companies take risky behavior into account when determining insurability and assigning rates.  Even if no questions appear on the life insurance application about driving, you can assume that the company is still checking your driving record.

      You may ask, why do insurance companies “punish” us for a momentary lapse of judgment?  The  University of Maryland in a 2007 study of 3.7 million licensed drivers shows that ticketing does not reduce drivers' likelihood of getting another ticket for speeding.  In fact it more than doubles the chance of getting future tickets.  Taken with previous studies that have shown that people with a documented history of speeding are more likely to be involved in motor vehicle crashes, can you blame insurance companies for considering driving habits.  According to the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration, speeding is a contributing factor in 31 percent of all fatal crashes in the United States.

     So once again I say, slow down.  Minimize the chance of getting speeding tickets.  If you do get a ticket, it is worth it to get an expert (competent counsel) working for you to minimize the effects of the ticket.