{"id":2293,"date":"2014-03-20T14:40:58","date_gmt":"2014-03-20T21:40:58","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.costulessdirect.com\/?p=2293"},"modified":"2022-12-21T03:39:08","modified_gmt":"2022-12-21T03:39:08","slug":"using-the-dmv-point-system-to-lower-your-auto-insurance-rates","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.costulessdirect.com\/blog\/using-the-dmv-point-system-to-lower-your-auto-insurance-rates\/","title":{"rendered":"Using the DMV Point System to Lower Your Auto Insurance Rates."},"content":{"rendered":"

Living in California definitely has its perks \u2014 great beaches, amazing weather, and beautiful coastlines are just a few of them. But as proud California residents, we also have some not so great things we have to deal with, like horrible traffic and high insurance rates. Auto Insurance in California<\/a> is among the most expensive in the United States, according Insure.com<\/a>. The good news is that you can help keep your insurance rates low by making sure your driver\u2019s record has no points on it, or as little points as possible.<\/p>\n

DMV Point System<\/strong>
\nThe Department of Motor Vehicles rates each driver using a point system. Each occurrence stays on your record for 36 months, or longer, depending on the type of conviction. A traffic ticket or any other traffic infraction can add a point to your driving record. The more points you have, the higher your insurance rates, and the greater the chance of getting your license suspended or revoked.<\/p>\n

The California DMV can suspend your license for 6 months or longer for being a negligent driver if you get:<\/strong><\/p>\n

\u2022\u00a0\u00a0 \u00a04 points in one year
\n\u2022\u00a0\u00a0 \u00a06 points in two years
\n\u2022\u00a0\u00a0 \u00a0Or 8 points in three years<\/p>\n

How Do You Get Points On Your License?<\/strong><\/p>\n

If you get pulled over by a police officer and he\/she writes you a ticket for a moving violation, such as not making a complete stop at a stop sign, then you now face a one-point violation. Other examples of one-point violations include:<\/p>\n

\u2022\u00a0\u00a0 \u00a0Traffic convictions (speeding, running a red light, making an unsafe lane change)
\n\u2022\u00a0\u00a0 \u00a0At-fault collisions<\/p>\n

Examples of two-point violations include:<\/strong><\/p>\n

\u2022\u00a0\u00a0 \u00a0Driving under the influence of drugs\/alcohol (DUI)
\n\u2022\u00a0\u00a0 \u00a0Reckless driving
\n\u2022\u00a0\u00a0 \u00a0Hit-and-run
\n\u2022\u00a0\u00a0 \u00a0Driving while your license is suspended or revoked<\/p>\n

How Points Affect Your Insurance Rates<\/strong><\/p>\n

The more points you have on your driving record, the higher your insurance rates will be.\u00a0 Every time you apply for auto insurance or renew your policy, the insurance company checks your driving record.\u00a0 This is why it\u2019s important to drive safely and avoid all traffic violations.<\/p>\n

Clearing Your Record<\/strong><\/p>\n

If you do get a ticket, however, all is not lost. When a driver is cited for a one-point traffic violation, he or she may be able to take the point off their driving record by attending a Traffic Violator School. This is only for drivers without a commercial driver\u2019s license, and for those who haven\u2019t had a citation in the past 18 months.<\/p>\n

If traffic school isn\u2019t an option, then you\u2019ll just have to be patient and let time clear your record.<\/p>\n

\u2022\u00a0\u00a0 \u00a0One-point additions usually clear after 3 years
\n\u2022\u00a0\u00a0 \u00a0Serious violations like DUI\u2019s and hit-and-run accidents clear after 10 years
\n\u2022\u00a0\u00a0 \u00a0Failure to report in court for a DUI will remain on your record for 10 years
\n\u2022\u00a0\u00a0 \u00a0Failure to report in court for any traffic violation will remain on your record for 5 years<\/p>\n

Checking Your Driving Record<\/strong>
\nIt\u2019s important to check your driving record to make sure it\u2019s accurate. Make a habit of doing this before shopping for car insurance quotes, or once a year before it\u2019s time to renew your current policy. No one is perfect and the same goes for the California DMV.\u00a0 A traffic violation that the DMV may have failed to remove after 3 years could mean the difference of hundreds of dollars saved on your car insurance rate. You can check your driving record by ordering a \u201cdriving record report\u201d through the DMV.<\/p>\n

The Take Away From This Blog Post<\/strong>
\nSaving hundreds of dollars a year on your car insurance could be as easy as obeying all traffic laws and keeping your DMV driving record clear of any points. Before you step on the accelerator, ask yourself if speeding is worth a point on your record, and the several hundred dollars price tag that comes along with a speeding ticket. Instead, leave early so you won\u2019t be in a rush, and enjoy the beautiful scenery California has to offer.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Living in California definitely has its perks \u2014 great beaches, amazing weather, and beautiful coastlines are just a few of them. But as proud California residents, we also have some not so great things we have to deal with, like horrible traffic and high insurance rates. Auto Insurance in California is among the most expensive […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":1975,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"inline_featured_image":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[697],"tags":[168,172],"acf":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.costulessdirect.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2293"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.costulessdirect.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.costulessdirect.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.costulessdirect.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.costulessdirect.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=2293"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/www.costulessdirect.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2293\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":6432,"href":"https:\/\/www.costulessdirect.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2293\/revisions\/6432"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.costulessdirect.com\/blog\/wp-json\/"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.costulessdirect.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=2293"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.costulessdirect.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=2293"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.costulessdirect.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=2293"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}