Q: Will paying a ticket for failing to yield risk my Illinois license suspension after past suspension?
Four years ago, my driver's license was suspended in Illinois due to accumulating too many tickets in a 24-month period. Since my license was reinstated in 2021, I have maintained a valid license without any further violations until now. Yesterday, I was involved in a car accident and received a ticket for failing to yield. There was minimal damage, and no one was injured. If I choose to simply pay the ticket, will my license be at risk of suspension again, or would attending driving school be a better option?
A:
Show up in court. If you had insurance and it was a minor accident, it’s likely the other driver will not show up in court, and the ticket will be dropped.
If the other driver does show up, you could plead guilty and it would not affect your license because it would not be a third Moving violation in 12 months.
But you would be better off asking for court supervision, or what you call Traffic school. That would not be a conviction. It would probably also be less harmful to insurance rates. You would pay a little bit more of a fine than if you pled guilty, but in the long run, you would be better off.
Cheryl Powell agrees with this answer
A:
I don't disagree with any of the facts stated by my colleague, Mr. Harvatin.
That said, there is an old saying that an ounce of prevention is worth a pound of cure. Accumulating multiple violations in the past should have taught you that lesson. The accumulation of multiple violations ALWAYS starts with one violation. If you have the option of attending driving school, it shouldn't even be a question. Attend driving school.
Cheryl Powell agrees with this answer
A: It sounds like you were under 21 with your earlier tickets but you are over 21 now. When a person is over 21, they are allowed 3 moving violation convictions a year. Your license gets suspended after the 3rd conviction. It is always better to take driving school to prevent a conviction from being on your record IMHO.
A:
You're right to be cautious, especially after having gone through a past suspension. In Illinois, paying a ticket is generally treated as a conviction, and that conviction can add points to your driving record. If you've had a clean record since 2021, one violation by itself likely won’t cause a suspension, but it will still go on your record and could impact your insurance rates or future driving privileges if additional tickets follow.
Choosing to attend traffic school, if you're eligible, is often a smarter move. In many cases, completing an approved defensive driving course can prevent the violation from appearing as a conviction on your record. This could help preserve your clean slate and reduce the risk of facing another suspension in the future. You'll need to check with the court listed on your ticket to see if traffic school is an option for this specific violation.
You’ve done the work to maintain a valid license since 2021, and one decision now could make a difference in keeping it that way. Paying the ticket without exploring alternatives might be convenient, but it’s worth taking a little time to see if there’s a way to protect your record. You've been responsible, and this step can help you stay on that path.
Justia Ask A Lawyer is a forum for consumers to get free answers to basic legal questions. Any information sent through Justia Ask A Lawyer is not secure and is done so on a non-confidential basis only.
The use of this website to ask questions or receive answers does not create an attorney–client relationship between Justia and you, or between any attorney who receives your information or responds to your questions and you, nor is it intended to create such a relationship. Additionally, no responses on this forum constitute legal advice, which must be tailored to the specific circumstances of each case. You should not act upon information provided in Justia Ask A Lawyer without seeking professional counsel from an attorney admitted or authorized to practice in your jurisdiction. Justia assumes no responsibility to any person who relies on information contained on or received through this site and disclaims all liability in respect to such information.
Justia cannot guarantee that the information on this website (including any legal information provided by an attorney through this service) is accurate, complete, or up-to-date. While we intend to make every attempt to keep the information on this site current, the owners of and contributors to this site make no claims, promises, or guarantees about the accuracy, completeness or adequacy of the information contained in or linked to from this site.