How long does a speeding ticket affect your auto insurance rates? (2024)
Usually, how long a speeding ticket affects auto insurance rates aligns with the three years it remains on your motor vehicle report. Insurers review your report at renewal, and rates go up around 15% after a speeding ticket. See how rates get affected by speeding tickets at top providers such as State Farm here.
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Jimmy McMillan
Licensed Insurance Agent
Jimmy McMillan is an entrepreneur and the founder of HeartLifeInsurance.com, an independent insurance brokerage. His company specializes in insurance for people with heart problems. He knows personally how difficult it is to secure health and life insurance after a heart attack. Jimmy is a licensed insurance agent from coast to coast who has been featured on ValientCEO and the podcast Modern Li...
Licensed Insurance Agent
UPDATED: Mar 18, 2024
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Advertiser Disclosure: We strive to help you make confident auto insurance decisions. Comparison shopping should be easy. We are not affiliated with any one auto insurance provider and cannot guarantee quotes from any single provider. Our partnerships don’t influence our content. Our opinions are our own. To compare quotes from many different companies please enter your ZIP code on this page to use the free quote tool. The more quotes you compare, the more chances to save.
Editorial Guidelines: We are a free online resource for anyone interested in learning more about auto insurance. Our goal is to be an objective, third-party resource for everything auto insurance related. We update our site regularly, and all content is reviewed by auto insurance experts.
UPDATED: Mar 18, 2024
It’s all about you. We want to help you make the right coverage choices.
Advertiser Disclosure: We strive to help you make confident auto insurance decisions. Comparison shopping should be easy. We are not affiliated with any one auto insurance provider and cannot guarantee quotes from any single provider. Our partnerships don’t influence our content. Our opinions are our own. To compare quotes from many different companies please enter your ZIP code on this page to use the free quote tool. The more quotes you compare, the more chances to save.
On This Page
- Speeding tickets can impact car insurance rates for up to three years
- Rates go up an average of 15% after you get a speeding ticket
- You’ll lose your good driver discount if you have multiple speeding tickets
A speeding ticket affects your auto insurance rates for up to three years, the amount of time most tickets remain on your motor vehicle report. Not only will you pay fines, but rates can increase by an average of 15% after a speeding violation.
However, the final amount it increases by depends on age, gender, driving record, accident history, location, and much more. If your rates increased due to a speeding ticket, begin comparison shopping for high-risk auto insurance.
Read through our guide to learn what happens to your auto insurance policy when you get a speeding citation, and why your driving record is one of the factors that affect auto insurance rates.
Speeding Tickets and Auto Insurance Rates: Understanding the Long-Term Impact
How long does a speeding ticket stay on your record? While the timeline changes by provider, speeding tickets stay on your driving record for about three years. However, the number of speeding tickets, at-fault accidents, and auto insurance claims you have will also affect rates.
Technically, the way your speeding ticket impacts rates depends on what company you use and what your driving record looks like. The surcharge for a speeding ticket also depends on how fast you were going over the limit. Compare rates from the best auto insurance companies for drivers with speeding tickets to find the cheapest coverage in your area.
Your first speeding ticket may not affect your auto insurance very much. Sometimes, auto insurance won’t increase your rates at all. However, a second or third violation will certainly lead to increases in your premiums.
Most states have a department of motor vehicles, or DMV, that keeps public logs for each driver. These logs are known as a full motor vehicle report or MVR.
Recent driving activity will be included in your MVR. This includes the following information:
- Traffic citations
- Speeding tickets
- Convictions
- Accidents
- Parking tickets
- License restrictions (for example, whether or not you’re required to wear glasses or contacts to drive).
- License suspensions
When you’re convicted of speeding, your insurance won’t go up until your next renewal period. When your renewal is processed, and the ticket shows up on your MVR, the carrier can then add the surcharge.
Read More: How Auto Insurance Companies Check Driving Records
Some tickets can carry a surcharge for more extended periods for more serious violations like reckless driving and driving under the influence.
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How Much Auto Insurance Rates Increase After a Speeding Violation
If you get cited for going one to 29 miles per hour over the speed limit, you could face an average surcharge of between 11% to 12%. However, if you are convicted of going 30 miles per hour over the speed limit, otherwise known as criminally speeding, the surcharge goes up to around 15%.
Ultimately, your auto insurance rates hinge on how risky your auto insurance company considers you. Each provider has different guidelines for calculating risk, leading to variations in how much your rates go up by.Brad Larson Licensed Insurance Agent
In the following table, compare annual auto insurance rates based on a clean driving record and driving records with one speeding violation from different national insurance providers.
Insurance Company Clean Record Speeding Violation Percent Difference
Allstate $160 $188 18%
American Family $117 $136 16%
Farmers $139 $173 25%
Geico $80 $106 33%
Liberty Mutual $174 $212 22%
Nationwide $115 $137 19%
Progressive $105 $140 33%
State Farm $86 $96 12%
Travelers $99 $134 35%
USAA $59 $67 14%
As you can see, drivers with one speeding ticket pay $46 more per month or $552 more per year for auto insurance than those with clean records.
The USAA speeding ticket violation rates are the most affordable when compared to other auto insurance companies. However, USAA is only available to members of active or retired military personnel and their immediate families.
If you have speeding tickets and are not in the military, the best auto insurance companies are American Family, Geico, Nationwide, and State Farm.
Read More:
- USAA Auto Insurance Review
- American Family Auto Insurance Review
- Geico Auto Insurance Review
- Nationwide Auto Insurance Review
- State Farm Auto Insurance Review
Some insurance companies penalize speeding tickets more so than others. In fact, some providers now offer an accident forgiveness program. This acts like an insurance discount by wiping a minor violation or citation, such as speeding, off of your record and providing you with more competitive rates.
If you’re an experienced driver and don’t have any prior insurance claims, plus few to no other citations on your record, then you’ll see the lowest increase in your rates. This is especially true if your insurance company has been insuring you for any length of time with no claims.
In this scenario, you’ve already established a good level or trust between yourself and your insurance provider.
Teenagers will have a harder time, however, due to their lack of driving experience already placing them in a high-risk insurance group. Similarly, if you decide to go to a new insurance company after receiving a speeding ticket, that insurance carrier is likely to quote you a higher rate after seeing the traffic citation.
Basically, because you have a very recent ticket, you will be deemed a more considerable risk by any company that is deciding whether to take you on as a new client.
If you have a rocky driving record, shop around for auto insurance companies who weigh those citations less than other providers. This way, you’ll know you’re paying your best rates until those violations fall off of your record.
How Else a Speeding Ticket Affects Auto Insurance
If you get a ticket, know that you are not alone. Some of the speeding ticket statistics are staggering. According to the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA), 9,378 speed-related deaths were recorded in 2018, which dropped by 6% from 2017.
You already know that getting a speeding ticket will likely increase your auto insurance premium. However, did you know that you may not see immediate changes depending on when your renewal date occurs?
That’s right, you likely will not see your premium increase from a speeding ticket until your auto insurance carrier reviews and renews your policy at the end of your contract term. This time in your insurance policy is also known as the renewal period.
Just because a surcharge can fall off your policy after three years doesn’t mean that the ticket can’t still affect your rates. Another way a speeding ticket can impact your auto insurance is that it can lead to losing different discounts, such as safe driver and defensive driver auto insurance discounts.
Be sure to review the qualifications for these hefty discounts so that you know what to expect. If you’re convicted of driving over the speed limit, it is in your best interest to take traffic school when you’re eligible.
If you’re not happy with the price of your auto insurance, make sure to compare rates with other carriers before you accept a high surcharge.
If there is a qualifying event from the prior year or six-months that would’ve usually lowered your insurance rates, then you may see little or no change to your premiums. For example, drivers under the age of 25 are considered higher risk. If you are turning 25 before your policy renews, the speeding ticket may offset the savings you would have received for reaching an age that is considered less risky for auto insurance carriers.
Finally, if you have several traffic violations in three years, your carrier may decide to drop you instead of renewing you. We’ll discuss this in more detail in the next sections.
Other Factors That Affect the Cost of Car Insurance
There are many different factors besides your driving record that will impact your auto insurance rates. However, the Department of Insurance must approve auto insurance rates to ensure that they are set at a fair and appropriate amount.
Once an insurer’s rates are officially supported, the company can begin to charge those rates to the public, increasing accordingly based on driver-risk.
When carriers give out quotes and underwrite applications, personal rating factors will then be used to set the price for each policy.
Those factors can vary drastically by provider, which is why comparison shopping is so vital. Until you compare quotes from multiple different companies, you’ll have no way of knowing what one will offer you your lowest rate without compromising your coverage needs.
The best auto insurance company for people with speeding tickets will either forgive the minor violation and provide you with the base rate or will work with you so you can receive the coverage you need without up-charging you. There’s a long list of individual risk factors that are used to determine the cost of a policy. Actuarial studies show that each factor can either increase the likelihood of filing a claim or decrease that risk.
Here are some of the factors that are used by most insurance companies:
- Age
- Gender
- Marital status
- Credit
- Vehicle type
- Location
- Driving record
- Annual mileage
In states where it’s still legal, auto insurance companies will usually also check your credit score. It doesn’t affect your score, but it can give the company insight into your potential level of risk.
Read More: How Credit Scores Affect Auto Insurance Rates
According to the Federal Trade Commission (FTC), the better your credit, the less risk you’ll be to the insurance company. Not only does having good credit make you more likely to pay your insurance bills on time, but it also proves you can afford your auto insurance deductibles or other repair costs as well.
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When to Expect Rates to Go Back Down After a Speeding Violation
Speeding tickets only impact your car insurance rates for around three years, and they should go back down once it falls off your MVR.
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However, you may find another company that offers you cheaper rates with a speeding citation than your existing provider. Enter your ZIP code into our free quote comparison tool below to get started on finding cheap insurance after a speeding ticket.
Frequently Asked Questions
How much does a speeding ticket hurt your auto insurance?
One speeding ticket may increase your auto insurance rates by about 15%. However, it depends on the company and how long you’ve been with them without making a claim.
Too many speeding tickets may cause you to lose coverage. Remember, auto insurance companies look back at your driving record from the last 36 months, or three years.
Do you have to notify your insurance if you get a speeding ticket?
No, you do not need to inform your insurance company if you get a speeding ticket. During your current contracted policy, the speeding ticket won’t initially show any increases.
However, when you renew your auto insurance policy, your auto insurance rate may be more expensive, depending on the number of violations on your driving record found by the underwriter during the renewal process.
How much does a speeding ticket raise auto insurance?
A speeding ticket can increase your auto insurance by at least $200 annually, sometimes more. On average, expect your rate to increase by about 15%.
Will three points for speeding affect my auto insurance?
Yes. When you lose points on your driver’s license, auto insurance companies will connect that to risk. Your auto insurance rates will likely be higher than average.
How do I keep a speeding ticket from affecting my auto insurance?
The only way to keep a speeding ticket from affecting your auto insurance rates is to not speed. However, you can also go to court and contest the ticket.
If you are found guilty of speeding, you can take a defensive driving course to get points back on your license and secure affordable auto insurance rates.
How much does auto insurance go up after a speeding ticket with State Farm and Progressive?
After one speeding violation, your State Farm auto insurance rate increases by $365 per year, while the Progressive auto insurance rate increases by $609 per year.
Does State Farm offer speeding ticket forgiveness?
While you can’t get State Farm speeding ticket forgiveness, the company usually has affordable rates for drivers with their first speeding ticket.
Will my insurance company drop me for a speeding ticket?
If you have several traffic violations, including speeding tickets, there’s a chance that your insurance company will decide to drop you as a client.
It’s against the law for your insurance company to cancel your insurance policy unless you’ve committed fraud, haven’t paid your bill, or don’t have a driver’s license. However, your provider also has the ability to refuse to renew your policy when it expires for any reason.
The likelihood of not being renewed as a result of a single speeding ticket is minimal. However, if you have several, it’s possible. Usually, insurance carriers drop clients who commit much worse traffic violations, including drunk driving or multiple reckless at-fault accidents.
What should I do if my auto insurance company does not renew me after a speeding ticket?
Unless your old insurance company is going out of business or is not offering auto insurance in your area anymore, the only reason you wouldn’t be renewed is for being high risk. As a high-risk driver, you should also expect to pay higher than average premiums for less coverage.
Unlike low-risk drivers, who insurance companies can count on to pay their premiums and not have to make a claim, there is an expectation that accidents will happen and more claims will be made by the high-risk drivers.
If your insurance carrier doesn’t renew your policy after you’ve received a speeding ticket, you’ll need to find a company that offers high-risk auto insurance.
Read More: Best Auto Insurance Companies for High-Risk Drivers
If you’re still having a difficult time finding a carrier that will insure you, find companies that specialize in non-standard auto insurance. Non-standard insurance is for drivers that can’t find coverage elsewhere.
Why does your driving record affect your auto insurance rates?
Your driving record is one of the easiest ways for an insurance provider to assess how risky of a driver you are. People with bad driving records statistically cause more accidents, file more claims, and cost insurance providers more money in the long run.
The only time a speeding ticket will cost your insurer money is when your speeding results in a collision. While a speeding ticket alone doesn’t cost the insurer money, it often will cost you in the form of higher insurance rates. That’s on top of any ticket or citation you may have received from law enforcement.
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Enter your ZIP code below to view companies that have cheap auto insurance rates.
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Jimmy McMillan
Licensed Insurance Agent
Jimmy McMillan is an entrepreneur and the founder of HeartLifeInsurance.com, an independent insurance brokerage. His company specializes in insurance for people with heart problems. He knows personally how difficult it is to secure health and life insurance after a heart attack. Jimmy is a licensed insurance agent from coast to coast who has been featured on ValientCEO and the podcast Modern Li...
Licensed Insurance Agent
Editorial Guidelines: We are a free online resource for anyone interested in learning more about auto insurance. Our goal is to be an objective, third-party resource for everything auto insurance related. We update our site regularly, and all content is reviewed by auto insurance experts.