Minor speeding tickets can add up to big bucks on insurance bill
When it comes to car insurance, the little things add up fast. Particularly the little infractions. According to a new report, a ticket for tailgating, or a minor speeding offense, can increase the cost of your insurance by as much as 20 percent.
The average annual cost of car insurance is $1,503. Add 20 percent to that figure, and the little ticket you got for going 5 miles-per-hour over the speed limit just cost you $300. That's in addition to the actual cost of the ticket.
The report from insuranceQuotes.com list the average amount charged for a number of different driving violations, and while the major ones like driving while drunk will cost you a lot of money in one go, the smaller ones can add up quickly.
Below is their breakdown of the financial impact that 17 common moving violations have, on average, on a driver's insurance bill:
- DUI: 93 percent
- Reckless driving: 82 percent
- 31+ MPH over speed limit: 30 percent
- 16-30 MPH over speed limit: 28 percent
- Careless driving: 27 percent
- Driving wrong way: 22 percent
- 1-15 MPH over speed limit: 21 percent
- Improper pass: 21 percent
- Following too close: 19 percent
- Failure to stop: 19 percent
- Failure to yield to pedestrian: 19 percent
- Failure to yield: 19 percent
- Not signaling: 19 percent
- Violating railroad rules: 19 percent
- Driving in car pool lane: 18 percent
- Driving without license: 16 percent
- Seat belt violation: 5 percent
Averages are based on a 45-year-old, married, employed female with a clean driving record driving a 2012 sedan. The hypothetical driver has a bachelor's degree, an excellent credit score, and no lapses in coverage.
There are ways to mitigate these costs.
"Drivers who commit moving violations can take safety classes to improve their skills and remove blemishes from their records," Laura Adams, analyst at insuranceQuotes.com, said in a release. "Many of these courses are offered online and can be completed in just a few hours. Otherwise, these infractions can lead to higher car insurance costs for up to three years."
