Flashes of blue and red light, lamenting police siren, knot in a stomach hole – being pulled for speeding. Speeding is a costly mistake. Not only does each state have financial penalties to speed up your beliefs, but your car insurance premiums can increase dramatically depending on where you live.
Nationally, fully covered auto insurance premiums increase by 23% after a single speeding ticket, which varies from state to state. For example, in North Carolina, the average increase is 49%, with drivers surged for three years due to speeding. Long-term impact speeding can affect car insurance fees, not to mention driver’s license status. This is why some drivers choose to fight speeding quotes in court.
Driver rates are the highest using speeding tickets
With the average cost of car insurance increasing dramatically over the past few years, no driver is excited about a 23% increase in speeding tickets. But what about 28% or 49%? According to an analysis of Bankrate rate data from Quadrant Information Services, drivers in the following states have seen average car insurance rises by more than 25% after speeding convictions, with North Carolina leading the pack.
How much speeding affects your insurance depends on where you live
How much will your car insurance premiums increase after speeding tickets rely heavily on your location? Just because you live in a state with expensive average car insurance premiums doesn’t necessarily mean you’ll face a high increase due to a speeding conviction, but it may be.
In California, average car insurance premiums are at the top of the spectrum, even drivers with clean records. So it may not be surprising that speeding tickets cause a rather large increase in premiums. As of April 2025, the average cost of fully covered car insurance in California is $2,975 per year. Compared to the national average cost of the national average coverage, which is $2,685, Californians pay around 10%.
However, the other three states with the highest rates of drivers with speeding tickets tend to have cheaper car insurance rates than the national average. When ranking car insurance premiums in all states and Washington, DC, ranks the most expensive to the cheapest, Wyoming ranks 45th. Drivers with clean records pay only $1,759 a year for full coverage. Meanwhile, drivers in North Carolina pay an average of $1,957 per year, while drivers in Massachusetts pay $2,091. Illinois drivers with clean driving records pay an average of $2,400 a year for a full coverage policy.
State with the lowest driver rate using speeding tickets
Surprisingly, drivers with clean records in New York pay the most for fully covered car insurance at $4,192 a year, but only 7% increase in the average rate after a speeding conviction. New Jersey drivers with clean records also pay above the national average for car insurance. Our analysis found that drivers in Garden State pay an average of $2,957 per year for full coverage, while drivers convicted of speeding in New Jersey see a minimal increase. On average, Texas car insurance premiums are close to the national average, at $2,642 a year, with drivers with speeding tickets increasing by 12%.
However, the trends at high rates, low increases do not hold true nationwide. Hawaii and Vermont residents are lucky enough to enjoy low average rates with clean driving records ($1,712 and $1,515 respectively), and average rate hikes for speeding convicted are low.
North Carolina’s unique traffic law system
Bankrate contacted Steve Beard, Vice President of Compensation and a resident of North Carolina. For insights into why speeding ticket prices are significantly higher than in other states, “state legislatures have the power to enact laws related to insurance pricing,” and “because insurance is regulated at the state level.”
Beard mentions the Safe Driver Incentive Plan (SDIP) in North Carolina. The state clearly defines the financial penalties North Carolina drivers may face when they receive a speeding violation. A certain number of SDIP insurance points will be charged for each type of violation. Each point increases the cost of car insurance by a given amount, and the more points you accumulate, the higher the premiums will be during the additional fee period.
The table below outlines how different levels of speeding affect premiums.
| SDIP Points | Convicted of speeding | Increase in the percentage rate |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Increase speeds below 10 mph with a speed limit of 55 mph | 40% |
| 2 | Speeding over 10 mph with speed limits above 55 mph and speeds below 76 mph | 55% |
| 2 | Increase speeds below 10 mph with speed limits above 55 mph | 55% |
| 3 | Speeds above 75 mph in speed zones below 70 mph | 90% |
| 3 | Speeds above 80 mph in speed zones above 70 mph | 90% |
| 10 | Racing on the highway or knowingly rent your car to a highway race | 260% |
| 10 | Speeding to avoid arrest | 260% |
| 12 | Rentalize your car for a pre-located highway race or intentionally pre-located highway race | 340% |
In addition to insurance points that affect car insurance premiums, points can apply to your driver’s license and may affect driving privileges. Points vary depending on the traffic violation. If you accumulate 12 points within three years, you can suspend your license for more than 60 days. The state hopes that increased car insurance premiums and potential licensing suspensions due to traffic violations will help motivate drivers to stay safe on the roads.
How do North Carolina’s traffic laws differ from other states?
Most states use points systems to track travel violations and may suspend licenses after drivers accumulate a certain number of points. Only a handful of states where Wyoming is one of them, have no use of the points system. Instead, they simply count each violation independently. For example, Wyoming’s Department of Transportation can hold tabs when moving violations and suspend the license for 90 days if the driver receives four within 12 months.
North Carolina is the only state that regulates how much violations and accidents are moving, which increase car insurance premiums. All other states allow insurers to set fees for driving activities. The Point of Use System is a state in which points are assigned to the driver’s license for each violation, and the insurance company allocates additional points to the driver in its insurance contract. However, there is no correlation between licensing points and insurance contract points.
Is it worth fighting speeding tickets?
The SDIP Point system motivates drivers who have been speeded to fight traffic tickets in court, according to Estie, a Bankrate staff member who prefers to remain anonymous to protect family privacy. Her husband received a speeding ticket earlier this year.
“North Carolina has some pretty strict ticketing laws,” Esti says. “We wanted to fight that to avoid points and insurance jumps.”
In North Carolina, where rates are imminent after being convicted of a travel violation, fighting speeding tickets may be a relatively easy decision. However, drivers in other states may not have such a clear picture of how insurance rates will affect post-conviction.
Traffic courts can take hours – sometimes all day. Not everyone can afford to pay for childcare to challenge their tickets in court. However, if you have the ability to attend court, fighting speeding tickets may be worth your time.
- This is your first ticket: Courts are more tolerant for first-time offenders. By fighting tickets, you may be reduced to an in-moving violation. This usually comes with a lower fine and does not affect your car insurance. The judge may also allow you to complete a driver training class in exchange for less violations.
- If you already have too many points on your driver’s license: Driver licensing points can be added immediately, especially in the case of major violations such as DUI. If you already have points in your license, a fight with tickets may reduce or eliminate the addition of additional points.
- I noticed an error in the ticket. Small errors in the paperwork can help you move from a speeding ticket. Please check your ticket accurately and pay particular attention to details such as the color of the car, where the quote was issued, and license plate number.
- You were speeding up to avoid accidents: Sometimes, traffic cameras and radar guns catch you at the wrong time. If you can prove that you have speeded up to avoid accidents, you could cut your fees or your tickets could be rejected.
“On the day of sentencing, I was informed that I had been downgraded to an inappropriate equipment violation without any increases in points or insurance,” he said, delighting that she and her husband won a day in court.
When should I hire a transportation lawyer?
Facing a judge in court can be a nerve-wracking experience. This may be a good reason to hire a traffic lawyer. For Esti, it was a matter of physical inability to attend court.
“The lawyers looked after almost everything,” Esti says.
If you have the financial means to do so, here is an example of when you want to consider hiring a transport lawyer:
- You may not attend court proceedings.
- You like to have the expert complete the legal documents or speak on your behalf.
- You would like to negotiate for a PJC or similar judgment that is at the discretion of the judge.
- Speeding ticket prices put your driver’s license status at risk.
How to find a transportation lawyer
When searching for a traffic lawyer, consider the following:
- Positive testimony from various customer review websites
- Several years of exam experience
- Included on reputable legal aid sites like USA.gov
Or, depending on where you live, your traffic lawyer may contact you within a few days of receiving your traffic citation. “Two days after my husband got his ticket, our mailbox was full of pamphlets served by speeding ticket lawyers. We compared prices and cost the fees and court fees and court fees.”
The Driver Privacy Protection Act (DPPA) regulates people who have access to personal information from the Automobile Department (DMV) and how this information is used. However, states interpret this law differently.
For example, the North Carolina Department of Public Safety says that “attorneys have constitutional rights,” allowing traffic lawyers to access the names and addresses of drivers who have been violated through the superior court.
However, in New York, DMV sells vehicles and registered data through contract sales every two years. Bidders can only use this information for public safety issues, such as vehicle recalls. Personal information cannot be used for research, marketing or solicitation.
Methodology
Bankrate uses Quadrant Information Services to analyze April 2025 fees for all ZIP codes and carriers in all 50 states. The cited fees are based on 40-year-old male and female drivers with clean driving records, good credits and the following full coverage limits:
- $100,000 per person physical injury liability
- $300,000 for each accident
- Liability for property damages of $50,000 per accident
- Uninsured driver physical injury for $100,000 per person
- Uninsured driver’s physical injury for $300,000 per accident
- $500 collision deduction possible
- Comprehensive $500 deduction
To determine the minimum coverage limit, bank rates used minimum coverage to meet the requirements of each state. Our base profile driver owns a 2023 Toyota Camry, commutes five days a week and drives 12,000 miles a year. Bundles and paperless billing discounts apply.
These are sample rates and should be used for comparison purposes only. Your quote is different.
If specified, the base profile has been modified with the following driver characteristics:
Incident: Rates were calculated by evaluating the base profile by applying the following incidents: clean records (base) and single speeding tickets.
