Hey folks. Was driving Highway 7 yesterday, maybe 40kms West of Perth, and got my first speeding ticket, of course in my 92 coupe I got last December.

I'm really not much of a speeder, I only ever open her up for a few seconds at a time for a cheap thrill, when I can see far down the road there are no traps. Hwy 7 was rough for several kms and she was really bouncing around, then suddenly, a beautiful freshly paved patch on an S-curve! I could see all the way down that there were no other cars, no driveways, and no speed traps, so I went for it.

Got her up to near 130 and dammit this cruiser comes around the other way. I hit the brakes, but not enough to be too obvious. In retrospect I might as well have slammed harder.

Anyway he pointed out his window and motioned for me to pull over. Clocked me at 116 in an 80 zone. (I actually thought it was 90 zone... stoopid me). Wrote the ticket for 110. $220... yeow! Oh well I've gone 15 years with no tickets so I guess I was due.

Questions:

1. If I had been in my burgundy Roadmaster or Toyota Sienna, you think I woulda got nailed anyway?

2. How come my ticket says $180 but in another box it says to pay $220. What's that all about?

3. Is it worth fighting? What would I say? It's far away from home so it'd be a b*tch to get there. I'm thinking maybe contest it and pull a no-show. Might get lucky if judge or cop doesn't show. I saw this happen once.

 

1. You were far exceeding the speed limit so most likely yes.

2. The first fine is called the "set fine" the other price is called the "total payable". The total payable is higher than the set fine and is the total cost of the speeding ticket. The Provincial Government adds a "victim fine surcharge" to every ticket that is issued in Ontario. The money collected by this form of taxation is used to help the victims of criminal acts.

3. Set a court date and plea bargain, either before you go in front of the Judge, or with the Judge. Either bargain for the reduction of points which in this case is about 4 demerit points and or money. Paying the ticket isn't the problem. It's the insurance, should it increase. You have nothing to loose by going to court and plea bargain.

 

ya right ! at least that's what they want us to believe.

 

Got my first ticket last Monday. He clocked me at 123 in an 80. He said just fight it and he will at the very least reduce it to 15 over.

It was my fault as I was in a rush to get home from the cottage.

 

Fight every ticket! You will at least get it reduced but hopefully it clogs the courts as best as possible. Getting a speeding ticket is one thing but what cheeses me off is the victims surcharge which is total B.S. Another cash grab.......

 

You think this will affect my insurance rates if he booked it for 110 in a 80 (30 over)? I prolly have one forgiveness or something like that. But I deal with 3 different insurance companies, including Lant for my "collectibles".

 

1.Probably not.. It’s harder for those vehicles to get up to that speed and less enjoyable going through the s turn.

2.As mentioned before Victims fine

3.Yes every ticket is worth fighting. If you don’t show up to court you’re presumed guilty… even if the officer doesn’t show.

 

Alot of companies have a 'conviction free' discount which could be between 10%-15%, but not every company will pull your MVR (driving record) every year, some may only do it every 3 yrs so you could 'escape' losing the discount...however..you're insured with 3 different companies so your odds are reduced greatly...plus I'm guessing two are at least for auto...so you could get hit twice...either lose a dicount or lose a 'preferred rate'...this is a maybe because I don't know your companies.

As for the tkt itself...as long as it's under 49km over the limit it makes no difference...a tkt is a tkt...if you're 50km or more over..then it gets ugly...real expensive.

As for fighting the tkt...I agree with most it's always worth it...if you can't do it because of the distance...maybe consider a tkt defender...it's an option.

Now one question...why 3 companies? (I work in the business..but don't sell...so I'm not trying to sell you). You're cheating yourself out of some discounts....when you look at each product separately it may appear cheaper...but by packaging everything under one company the overall price WILL be cheaper...not to mention in the event of a claim you're dealing with one company not several.

 

Being an insurance agent, I can tell you what I know of my company and some companies that I have talked to about with new customers.

Will it affect your insurance? Yes and No.

Most insurance companies do not charge for your first ticket and heck probably won't find out about for a couple of years if they ran an MVR recently. (I have customers that haven't had an MVR done on them in like 10 years.)

Now... I have seen the exact opposite with some companies. Where people lose their 10*/special discount rating for being completely clean. It really is hit or miss.

Tip for everyone about tickets and insurance as long as it is 49km and under it is considered the same with insurance companies ... 10 over or 45 over. We all consider it a minor.

 

Wow .... Us insurance guys all sound the same.

 

It's that brainwashing they do in training.

 

Not true. One ticket 29 or under does not affect the premium, but 29+ does. Or the second under-29 ticket would affect premium. That's according to my insurance company.

 

Really? To be honest I have never heard of that. I know the distinction for almost all companies/brokers I have talked to was minor vs major.

Good to know, Always learn something new.

 

Your Roadmaster, and your Toyota can both break the speedlimit, so what does it matter what vehicle you are in?

BTW, I didnt hear back from you yet. Thought I would . How did the photo shoot go wuith Huw in regards to the Buick?

 

I guess I was wondering if you guys believe the myth that sports cars get pulled over more often. Cop was driving other way. So did he decide to clock me cuz it was a vette? Or does he clock everything that comes by. As I said, first ticket in 15 years so it makes me wonder.

(Sorry for not getting back to you re: the Roadmaster. I had it professionally detailed, paint treatment, leather treatment, everything. It looked awesome and some of the pics Huw took made it look brand-new. Huw took about 300 pics but the article isn't published yet. I will post here when I have a pdf of the article.

 

So my other question for the group... Suppose I drive out to fight the ticket. What am I gonna say? Certainly I can't say the throttle was sticking...

Is it just to hope cop doesn't show?

Not sure about the plea bargain idea. If my insurance rates aren't affected by this, I doubt I would make the trip just to get it knocked down $100 or so.

Life was easier when I just drove slow cars!

 

My advice would be to look at the whole picture of 'what could be the total cost' if you just pay it vs what are the benefits of having it reduced/thrown out. Maybe you're insured with the same company as Desi and the tkt could cost you $220 plus a conviction surcharge (30km over)for the next 3 yrs...or it's just a discount you lose...but that could still be a 10-15% difference which means this ticket could end up costing you over $600. Or there are a few companies that the ticket won't affect your premium at all.

Not to freak you out at all, but give your broker a call and ask a 'what if' with regards to the companies where you're cars are insured. Find out how each company rates for tickets. Then you'll know the TRUE cost of the tkt.

By the way having the tkt reduced to say 15km over the limit, reduces the fine over $165.

 

You were driving too fast plan and simple. It has nothing to do that you were driving an LT-1 Corvette. Trust me, C4's Corvette's are not head turner's like they used to be. I find it funny that Corvette's owners think they get stopped because of there car. Who knows, That Police Officer might of hated C4 Corvette's .

 

Fight all tickets as mentioned; best case the officer doesn't show up, worst case you pay the original fine. Usually it's somewhere in the middle, reduce to 15 over, $60 fine. AFAIK, a conviction is a conviction for purposes of insurance. Odds are you won't have to "say" anything, show up 15 min early and the prosecutor will likely just cut you a deal. So ya, the question is is $160 worth your time.

 

I will give you some experiences I’ve had with insurance companies, but won't mention the actual company.

I had an accident with a company vehicle once and they wanted to increase my wife insurance by $1,500.00 since they felt that I may move her car in the driveway some day, even though we had a double car driveway, and I was only charged not convicted with an offense yet.

A friend asked if he should claim an accident and pay the deductible or just pay outright and not go through insurance, they recommended he not go through insurance and they still raised his insurance anyway, since they felt he was more of a risk now.

Another friend called insurance for a hypothetical accident and they raised his insurance without reason even though he didn't claim it.

There was a show on TV about a year ago and the Insurance Bureau of Canada, stated that insurance brokers can put you in any category and raise your insurance if they feel you are more of a risk from the time you were signed on. This person recommended that you call the Insurance Bureau of Canada rather than your own agent for hypothetical questions since it arises suspicion.

There are too many more to mention.

Again these were my personal experiences and do not depict all insurance company's and or agent. Other factors to consider are the relationship you have with your agent.