Colorado Traffic Tickets | Off The Record

Be sure to respond to your Colorado traffic ticket within 20 days or you may be required to go to court and you cannot renew your license until the fine is paid.

FINES & PENALTIES

Traffic fines in Colorado vary by court and violation. There are two types of traffic tickets:

Traffic infractions which are a civil charge
Traffic offenses which are a criminal charge

Be sure to see which type of ticket you were cited for.

Colorado's Division of Motor Vehicles (DMV) operates under a driving record point system. If you receive the following points on your current driving record, your license is up for suspension. The length of a license suspension ranges from 6 months to a maximum of 1 year.

Age Range Point
17 and under 6 within 12 months
17 and under 7 or more within any time period
18 to 21 9 or more within 12 months
18 to 21 12 or more within 24 months
18 to 21 14 or more within any time period
21 and over 12 or more within 12 months
21 and over 18 or more within 24 months

Age Range	Point
17 and under	6 within 12 months
17 and under	7 or more within any time period
18 to 21	9 or more within 12 months
18 to 21	12 or more within 24 months
18 to 21	14 or more within any time period
21 and over	12 or more within 12 months
21 and over	18 or more within 24 months

Some major violations include:

Reckless driving.
Driving under the influence (DUI) of drugs or alcohol.
Leaving the Scene of an Accident.

POINTS FOR VARIOUS TRAFFIC TICKET VIOLATIONS

Violation	Points
Speeding 1-4 mph over posted speed limit	0
Speeding 5-9 mph over posted speed limit	1
Speeding 10-19 mph over posted speed limit	4
Speeding 20-39 mph over posted speed limit	6
Speeding 40 mph over over posted speed limit	12
Improper passing	4
Failure to stop for school bus	6
Following too closely	4
Failure to observe traffic sign or signal	4
Failure to yield to emergency vehicle	4
Failure to yield right-of-way	3
Improper turn	3
Driving in wrong lane or direction on one-way street	3
Failure to signal or improper signal	2
Improper backing	2
Failure to dim or turn on lights	2
Operating a vehicle with defective head lamps	1
Eluding or attempting to elude a police officer	12
Alteration of suspension system	3
Failure to yield right-of-way to pedestrian	4
Failure to yield right-of-way to person with a disability	6
Reckless Driving	8
Careless Driving	4
Careless Driving Resulting in Death	12
Failure to reduce speed below an otherwise lawful speed when a special hazard exists	3
One to four miles per hour over the maximum lawful speed limit of forty miles per hour driving a low-power scooter	0
Five to nine miles per hour over the maximum lawful speed limit of forty miles per hour driving a low-power scooter	2
Greater than nine miles per hour over the maximum lawful speed limit of forty miles per hour driving a low-power scooter	4
Failure to stop for school signals	6
Driving on wrong side of road or driving on wrong side of divided or controlled-access highway	4
Failure to maintain or show proof of insurance	4
Driving with a passenger who is under twenty-one years of age or driving between 12 midnight and 5 a.m.	2
DUI	12
Driving While Ability Impaired	8
Underage Drinking and Driving	4
Engaging in a Speed Contest	12
Engaging in a Speed Exhibition	5
Leaving the Scene of an Accident	12

MOVING VIOLATIONS

Some key points about defensive driving school:

Dismiss a traffic ticket
Potentially earn an insurance discount
Remove existing points
Avoid future points being added to your record
It takes 4 to 8 hours to complete a course

A list of approved defensive driving school courses are not listed on the Colorado DMV site. Please double check whether a course is approved by the state.

DEFENSIVE DRIVING SCHOOL

Some key points about defensive driving school:

Dismiss a traffic ticket
Potentially earn an insurance discount
Remove existing points
Avoid future points being added to your record
It takes 4 to 8 hours to complete a course

A list of approved defensive driving school courses are not listed on the Colorado DMV site. Please double check whether a course is approved by the state.

RESPONDING TO YOUR TICKET

There are two ways to respond to your traffic ticket:

Paying the fine
Requesting a contested hearing

Regardless of plea, it must be entered before the ticket's due date which is 20 days from the infraction date.

Pay the ticket

Paying a Colorado traffic ticket is an admission of guilt.

This means:

You are waiving your right to challenge the traffic ticket in court.
Depending on your CO driving record, the DMV may suspend your Colorado driver's license.
The traffic violation may cause an increase in your car insurance rates.

Requesting a contested hearing

Pleading not guilty in Colorado may cause the courts to offer you a plea bargain which means you plead guilty to a lesser offense before your court hearing date. Courts are sometimes motivated to do this to save time by avoiding a court hearing.

If you want to plead “not guilty" to the violation, you can request a contested hearing at the relevant county court by checking the appropriate check box on your ticket and then mailing it in to the court. You can also contest it right on your phone by using the Off The Record app.

Only 5% of drivers contest their traffic tickets.

HIRING AN ATTORNEY

Fighting your traffic ticket can help you avoid fines, license suspension, and increased insurance premiums. A traffic ticket attorney is a major asset in that fight. Typically, you can expect an attorney to:

Request a contested hearing
Request discovery for your case
Represent you in court
Negotiate with the prosecutor to have your charges dropped or reduced

Fight your Colorado traffic ticket

What were you cited with?