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How States View Moving Violations in Pennsylvania
As you will see below, states in our area view Pennsylvania traffic violations differently. However, all states have one thing in common. If you are an out of state driver ticketed in Pennsylvania, the violation will be reported to your home state and will appear on your driving record, and your insurance company will be able to see it. As a result, even if no points transfer to your home state, your insurance premiums can be negatively affected. Call us at (800) 536-0501 BEFORE you pay the fine for a free consultation and we can explain to you your options.
CaliforniaIf you are a California driver ticketed in Pennsylvania, 1 point will be assessed to your driving record for any out of state moving violation. In Pennsylvania, there are several zero points citations, such as Speeding at 5 mph over the limit and 3111a, that California may still view as a 1 point moving violation. Additionally, all out of state moving violations will be recorded on your California driving record.
ConnecticutIf you are a Connecticut driver cited in Pennsylvania, no points will transfer to Connecticut. However, Pennsylvania will notify the Connecticut DMV about the violation which will appear then on your driving record, so your insurance company will be able to see the violation.
DelawareIf you are a Delaware driver and you receive a citation in Pennsylvania, points will transfer to Delaware based on Delaware’s point system. For instance, if you are cited in Pennsylvania for speeding at 5 mph over the limit, Delaware will assess 2 points to your license whereas Pennsylvania assesses no points for that violation. All moving violations in Pennsylvania will appear on your Delaware driving record so your insurance company will be able to see it.
FloridaIf you are a Florida driver and you receive a citation in Pennsylvania for a moving violation, Florida will assess points based on Florida DMV’s point system, plus it will appear on your driving record. For example, if you have been cited for Speeding at 5 mph over the limit in Pennsylvania, although that is a zero point offense in PA, Florida will assess 3 points to your license under Florida law. If the police officer in PA “gave you a break” by citing you with “Traffic Control Devices” under section 3111a of the vehicle code, this is also a zero point offense in PA which Florida will assess 3 points.
MarylandIf you are a Maryland driver and are cited in Pennsylvania, no points will transfer to Maryland unless the offense is a major violation or if the offense was for Hit and Run with Injuries. A Pennsylvania violation will appear on driving record so even if you are assessed no points in Maryland, your insurance company will still be able to see the violation.
MassachusettsMassachusetts is not part of the Driver’s License Compact so points do not transfer and the violation does not appear on the driving record.
New JerseyIf you are a New Jersey driver ticketed in Pennsylvania, 2 points will be assessed to your driving record for any out of state moving violation. In Pennsylvania, there are several zero points citations, such as Speeding at 5 mph over the limit and 3111a, that New Jersey still views as a 2 point moving violation. Additionally, all out of state moving violations will be recorded on your New Jersey driving record .
New YorkIf you are a New York driver cited in Pennsylvania, no points will transfer to New York. However, Pennsylvania will notify New York about the violation which will appear on your driving record and your insurance company will be able to see it.
North CarolinaIf you are a North Carolina driver and you receive a citation in Pennsylvania for a moving violation, North Carolina will assess points based on North Carolina DMV’s point system, plus it will appear on your driving record.
OhioIf you are a Ohio driver cited in Pennsylvania, no points will transfer to Ohio. However, Pennsylvania will notify the Ohio DMV about the violation which will then appear on your driving record, so your insurance company will be able to see the violation.
West VirginiaIf you are from West Virignia and you receive a citation in Pennsylvania for a moving violation, points will be assessed based on West Virginia DMV’s point system, plus it will appear on your driving record. For example, if you have been cited for Speeding at 20 mph over the limit in Pennsylvania, this is a 4 point offense in PA, but West Virginia will assess 6 points to your license under West Virginia law.
VirginiaIf you are a Virginia driver cited in Pennsylvania, Virginia assesses points for out of state citations based on Virginia DMV’s point system. For example, if you are cited in Pennsylvania for Speeding 5mph over the limit, that is a zero point offense in Pennsylvania, but Virginia will assess 3 points to your license under Virginia law. All out of state moving violations will appear on your Virginia driving record.
Additionally, if you are an out of state driver ticketed in Pennsylvania, do not ignore the citation! All of the states surrounding Pennsylvania will suspend your license if you ignore the ticket you received in Pennsylvania. You have 10 days from when the citation was issued to enter a plea with the court. If you are an out of state driver ticketed in Pennsylvania, you should follow the instructions on the ticket and plead “Not Guilty” and you will then be mailed a court date. Do NOT go online to pay the citation as you can only plead Guilty online. Contact the experienced attorneys at Ellis B. Klein & Associates at (800) 536-0501 and we will be happy to give you a free consultation over the phone and guide you in the right direction. We have a money back guarantee for most traffic tickets if we are unable to help you reduce the points on your Pennsylvania moving violation. Additionally, most judges will allow us to appear in court on your behalf so that you would not be required to come to Pennsylvania to attend the traffic court hearing.
Will Your Insurance Go Up if You Are Convicted of a Moving Violation from Pennsylvania?Almost all of my clients ask me how a ticket is going to affect their insurance. The truthful answer is that it may affect insurance, or it may not. There is really no way to know until it happens and there is no magic formula to predict an insurance increase. Insurance companies can raise your rates for any reason and there are many factors such as the insured’s record and the type of violation that insurance companies take into consideration. Some insurance companies will do nothing, while others will raise your premiums, and yet other companies can drop you. A study was conducted by Insurance.com that compared insurance quotes that were quoted to drivers with common violations and compared them to quotes given to drivers without any record of driving infractions. The following is the list of results that they found but please note that this list is just an example, with every case, and every insurance company being different
- Reckless Driving 22% higher rate
- DUI1st offense 19% higher
- Careless Driving 16% higher
- Major Speeding violations 15% Higher
- Stop sign/red light 14% higher
- Improper Passing 12% higher
- Speeding 15-29 mph over limit 12% higher
- Speeding 6-14 mph over limit1 1% higher
What does this mean for your pocketbook if you get convicted of certain moving violations in Pennsylvania? The more serious the ticket, (the more points), the greater the likelihood that your insurance premiums will increase. To equate this to potential dollar figures, a recent study found that the following moving violations in Pennsylvania can raise your insurance rates as follows:
Violation | Possible Increase |
|---|---|
| Racing on Highways (5 Points) | $342 |
| Reckless Driving (5 Points) | $343 |
| Failure to Stop at a Red Light (3 Points) | $219 |
| Speeding 6 - 10 MPH Over Limit (2 Points) | $218 |
| Speeding 11 - 15 MPH Over Limit (3 Points) | $219 |
| Speeding 16 - 20 MPH Over Limit (4 Points) | $221 |
| Speeding 21 - 25 MPH Over Limit (4 Points) | $224 |
| Failure to Yield (3 Points) | $219 |
| Passing School Bus (5 Points) | $217 |
| Following Too Closely (3 Points) | $216 |
| Improper Passing (3 Points) | $216 |
| Speeding in School Zone (3 Points) | $222 |
| Illegal Turn (3 Points) | $216 |
Please note that if your insurance premiums increase as a result of a moving violation, typically insurance companies will raise rates for 3 consecutive years, while other insurance companies may choose to drop coverage altogether. As the table above illustrates, the impact on your insurance can be far greater than the cost of the fine and hiring an attorney. The list above is an illustration and every case and every insurance company is different. Call us for a free consultation BEFORE you pay the fine.
Again, the above is simply an example of a study conducted regarding insurance rates. It does not mean that your rates will automatically increase as a result of a moving violation. However, it is always best to try to get zero points on a moving violation as most zero point offenses do not get reported to the Department of Transportation.
If you are ticketed in Pennsylvania, you only have 10 days from when the citation was issued to enter a plea with the court. You should follow the instructions on the ticket and plead “Not Guilty” and you will then be mailed a court date. Do NOT go online to pay the citation as you can only plead Guilty online. Contact the experienced attorneys at Ellis B. Klein & Associates at (800) 536-0501 and we will be happy to give you a free consultation over the phone and guide you in the right direction. We have a money back guarantee for most traffic tickets if we are unable to help you reduce the points on your Pennsylvania moving violation. Additionally, most judges will allow us to appear in court on your behalf so that you would not be required to come to Pennsylvania to attend the traffic court hearing. We have handled thousands of traffic tickets over the last 25 years in practice and we have a 99% success rate in reducing points on most moving violation. Call us BEFORE you pay the fine!
