Out-Of-State Violations May Affect Car Insurance

In the “good old days” it was possible to get a speeding ticket outside of your home state without it affecting your driving record or adding points to your license. In fact, we’ve all heard jokes about paying off the small-town sheriff to satisfy a ticket so the driver could get on his way. Unfortunately, the information age has changed all of that. Depending on your own state laws, and the agreement your state department of motor vehicles has with its counterparts in other states, that speeding ticket you got while on family vacation could come back to haunt you and your previously affordable car insurance.

According to the American Association of Motor Vehicle Administrators, state and local jurisdictions now cooperate by sharing information electronically through the use of two programs known as the Driver License Compact (DLC) and the Nonresident Violator Compact (NVC). Both of these programs rely heavily on interstate data connections and computer databases to link them and share information.

How It Works in the Field

In all but the smallest and most financially strapped police departments, technology has made it possible to give officers on the road real-time access to database information. It’s no longer uncommon for a police cruiser to have an on-board laptop with a wireless data connection capable of accessing DMV records at any time. That means a driver pulled over outside of his own home state will not likely get by without a police officer knowing about outstanding warrants and other things on his record.

By the same token, if that driver contests the violation in court, that court will have access to his driving record through his own state DMV. The judge will be able to look at that record and render a decision accordingly. If a driver has a long and complicated record the judge may not be too lenient. Keep in mind that all of this is done in real-time using computers with direct access to DMV records.

How It Affects Your Insurance

If there’s any good news in this it can be found in the fact that not all states treat violations from other states the same way. For example, a Colorado resident caught speeding in Nevada may not see the violation show up on his Colorado record. No points will be assigned his license, his insurance company will not have record of the violation, and everything remains the same when the driver renews a policy or looks at new auto insurance quotes. Yet if that same driver is convicted of DWI in Nevada, Colorado will not let that slide.

The Insurance Company Connection

If you’re wondering how car insurance companies find out about violations, it’s actually fairly simple. They are connected to the very same system the state DMVs use; they just have different access. Because they’re lugged in, your insurance company can run a check on your record at any time; most do so on a fairly regular basis. That’s why it’s never a wise idea to hide violations or accidents from your insurance company. They most likely will find out and, in doing so, come to the conclusion that you can’t be trusted. In their mind that means increased risk that could make your cheap car insurance not so cheap any more.

The best way to avoid the question of out-of-state violations is to simply obey the law. If you’re not speeding, you’ll never have to worry about a speeding ticket. Not only will this keep you out of trouble with the local police, it will also keep you in the good graces of your insurance company.

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