Having a traffic lawyer is almost always better than not having one, but not every traffic ticket or traffic offense is serious enough to justify the expense of hiring one. I’ll be the first person to tell you that often the best thing to do is to pre-pay your ticket and move on with life.

However, this is not true for all traffic offenses. The worst part is that most people don’t know when it makes sense to hire a traffic lawyer and when it does not. So here are some situations where you may need a traffic lawyer.

You need a traffic lawyer if your traffic ticket a criminal charge

Virginia has many criminal traffic offenses. Reckless driving, driving without a valid license, driving on a suspended license, driving without insurance and aggressive driving are all criminal offenses. You can be charged with reckless driving for speeding more than 20 over the limit or for driving faster than 80 mph.

Criminal offense remain on your criminal record forever and they cannot be expunged from your record if you are convicted in Virginia.

If you cannot prepay your ticket it is likely because it is a criminal offense not a traffic ticket. If you want to know for sure whether or not you are charged with a criminal offense you can do so by looking your case up online.

If you are charged with a criminal offense, definitely hire a traffic lawyer. Don’t try and handle it on your own.

You may want a traffic attorney if conviction will increase your insurance premiums

The only reason to not hire a traffic attorney is the cost. The answer to the question “Do I need a traffic lawyer?” is a financial one. If a traffic lawyer can save you more money than they cost then they are worth the cost.

In order to know the cost and benefit of traffic lawyer you need to know what will happen to your insurance if you are convicted. If you are charged with a multiple offenses, if you have been convicted of another ticket in the last year or two or if your pending traffic ticket is a serious offense then your insurance may go up dramatically. Other factors like your age and policy type can affect changes in premiums.

Talk to your insurance provider and find out what the actual increase will be and then call Nichols & Green PLLC for a free consultations to find out what we charge and what we can likely do with your case.

You may need a traffic lawyer is conviction will affect your job

If you drive for a living, have a CDL or if you drive a company vehicle for your work a simple traffic ticket may affect your job. If that is the case you definitely want to talk to a traffic lawyer.

A Traffic Lawyer can be the “ounce of prevention”.

If you get a serious traffic charge your DMV record will be one of the most important factors in determining the outcome of your case. Having a clean record can make all the difference. Consequently, if you have a minor traffic ticket, hiring a traffic lawyer to keep your record clean makes a lot of sense if there is any chance you may get a more serious offense down the road.

Hiring a traffic lawyer for a minor infraction can be the “ounce of prevention” that is worth a “pound of cure”.

You should get a traffic attorney if the DMV will take or restrict your license

If you get too many points too quickly the DMV may suspend or restrict your driving privileges. Each state is different, but in Virginia if you get two or more tickets in the same year you may be at risk for restrictions or probation.

If you are on DMV probation or DMV control period getting any moving violation will affect your standing with the DMV.

Hire a traffic lawyer is you have received other tickets recently or if you are on DMV probation or DMV control Period.

Hire a traffic attorney if there is a possibility of a law suit (for accident cases)

If you are in a car accident and you are concerned about a law suit, the decisions you make in traffic court can affect the outcome of the law suit. Talk to a traffic lawyer is your ticket is at all related to a potential or pending law suit.

Get a traffic attorney for your traffic ticket if you have other serious pending charges

If you have multiple pending charges including a minor traffic ticket, don’t just prepay the ticket. If the tickets court date is the same as your serious charges many traffic attorneys will represent you for free on the traffic ticket if you hire them for the more serious charges.

Often it is easy to get a small ticket dismissed if it is associated with a more serious offense. In that situation prepaying the ticket is just throwing away money.

Hire a traffic lawyer if you are on probation.

If you are on probation, especially for a traffic crime, some judge consider traffic ticket a violation of your probation. Before you prepay a traffic ticket, consult with a traffic attorney to make sure you are not violating your probation.

Before you make any decision about whether to pled guilty or prepay a ticket, take the time to get a free consultation from a traffic lawyer. There is no reason not to.