If you are concerned about auto insurance prices, you know that one of the things that can cause your insurance rates to rise it getting a ticket. Insurance companies take off points for tickets and accidents and if you score too low, you pay more for insurance. In Texas, there is a way that getting a ticket can actually help you to lower the price you pay for insurance by ten percent. Texas defensive driving courses can keep a ticket from going onto your driving record and reduce your insurance rates.
The state will allow you to take this course in order to get a ticket dropped one time every twelve months. After completing the course, the certificate is sent to the court and the ticket is dismissed. It never appears on your driving record and your insurance rates stay lower. The additional ticket is on top of the already lower rate since you do not have the ticket reported.
You have to make a guilty plea or a no contest plea in order to qualify for this program. This plea must be made before the ticket comes due. You must have a Texas driver's license. The ticket cannot have been in a work or school zone. Speeding tickets must be twenty-five or less miles per hour over the speed limit. The ticket cannot be for a seat belt violation. If you meet these conditions and have proof of insurance at the time of the ticket, you can take the course and the ticket will not appear on your record.
According to state law, driving schools must charge a minimum fee of twenty-five dollars for the class. Since this is a competitive business, there are several of the schools that charge the minimum amount.
The class can be taken over the internet. This allows you to take a course any time that fits your schedule and to break up the class into several short sessions. You no longer have to schedule a day off work and then spend six hours in a classroom. Instead, you pay your fee by credit card, log into your account and watch the video presentations at your convenience. At the end of the course, you take a short test that you must score 70 percent or above on and you pass the course. If you fail the test, you can review the material and take the test up to two more times in order to pass the course.
Since the course is so inexpensive, many people choose to take a course just to save money on the cost of insurance. Additionally some employers are now requiring that their employees take the defensive driving course on a regular basis.
Remember, if you allow a ticket to go onto your driving record, it will stay there for three years. That can mean that every month for the next three years, you will pay more for your auto insurance. The other option is to make arrangements with the court to take a course and keep the ticket from going onto your driving record. Then for the next three years, instead of paying more for insurance, you will get an additional ten percent off the cost of insurance.
The best way to take care of a ticket in Texas is with a Texas defensive driving course.
