Wyoming Speeding Ticket - Minimizing impact on insurance

June 3, 2021 11:29 AM

So I got a speeding ticket in Wyoming (not my state of residence - which is Utah). The court my ticket will be heard in doesn't seem to do the "Driving school instead of a ticket or reporting program", and I can't see an obvious way to stop notification to car insurance, or is there?

I got a speeding ticket in (a small town) in Lincoln County, WY. I could debate the merits of the ticket, but suffice to say it was a good old fashioned small town speed trap and I'll just own it (46 in a 35 zone about 200 feet from the zone going to 45 but snapping myself out of that derail....) . Judging by the ticket information and fine relative to the schedule it appears to be at the lower end of seriousness, and I can simply elect to pay the fine instead of turning up to the court. I did call the courthouse - and it seems like Lincoln Country Circuit Court does not participate in any sort of "do a Driver Ed online course and we don't report it/waive the fine" sort of deal. Wyoming doesn't have a points system but is part of the sharing agreement to send violation data to other states.

Question: Is there any reasonable way I can potentially avoid the speeding violation going to my car insurance, or is there a fighting chance it won't be? I've had a clean record with this insurer since I changed to them about 2 years back, and the first time I had a ticket in 2015 I used Drivers Ed online to avoid reporting). This is only the second ticket I've ever had in 25+ years of driving.

To be clear I'm not at all worried about the actual fine amount - less than $150 - it hurts but it's not material in the scheme of things - I'm considering it an idiot tax on myself and am just going to pay it. For various reasons I don't want any legal complications and will take the path of least resistance to put behind me. I'm not interested in contesting the ticket - I'll own that - and driving back to Wyoming for the court date would be somewhat painful. The court only meets once a month so the chances the Officer involved doesn't show is probably low I'd imagine given they do all the cases same day (and to be honest - I don't imagine the officer has much else to do in this very very small town)

But I would really prefer not to have my insurance rates jump up 25% or more. I've heard that it can be hit and miss whether out of state tickets ever get to your insurer, but that seems highly anecdotal.

if the best answer is "call a lawyer" then that's fair - probably a long short anyone knows the workings of the Lincoln County Circuit court.

posted by anonymous to Law & Government (8 answers total)

In the end, all the court cares about is the check you'll write. I once was able to plead a traffic fine down to some non-vehicular violation (public nuisance, or something similar) The fine was the same, but that avoided the possible insurance ding. It was in a local jurisdiction, though, so I didn't have to travel out-of-state to do it.

Also, check your insurance policy. Many insurers now offer forgiveness for a first offense, as long as it's minor, which yours sounds like.
posted by Thorzdad at 11:37 AM on June 3, 2021 [1 favorite]

If you don’t want this reported to your insurance, the classic maneuver is to retain a traffic attorney in the town the ticket was issued in.

There’s typically a gentleman’s agreement in place that if you care enough to retain a local lawyer, that lawyer will be able to knock the charge down to something that isn’t a moving violation. You’ll still have to pay a fine (and the lawyer, typically on an inexpensive flat fee basis), but there won’t be any insurance hit.

This usually avoids any court date, since the matter will be settled prior to court, but if you go this route and it has to go in front of a judge for some reason, the attorney can appear for you and you won’t have to drive back for trial.
posted by killdevil at 11:42 AM on June 3, 2021 [7 favorites]

Ditto traffic lawyer. They can plead it down to a fine but no points, usually, unless it's egregious.
posted by kschang at 11:59 AM on June 3, 2021

In a similar situation in upstate NY, I called the local prosecutor and negotiated a plea deal to a lesser offense (non-moving) and paid the fine. Never reported to anyone as far as I ever knew. A speeding trap in a small town is there for two reasons. One, to slow you down as you go through town, and to generate revenue to fund the Po-po.
posted by AugustWest at 11:59 AM on June 3, 2021 [1 favorite]

There's an app whose name I can't remember now that helps find an attorney for this sort of case. It wouldn't be my first choice of means to get a lawyer for various reasons, but if you have trouble finding one, it's an option.

Call the prosecutor first, but don't be surprised if they won't return your calls. That's been a thing for me in small towns with part time prosecutors. You may get them to let you plead to a non-moving violation, a city ordinance instead of state law to avoid the reporting, or offer you a deferred prosecution agreement.

Also, just because a state is a member of the compact doesn't mean the information will actually get shared, though I suspect you're less likely to get lucky when the states border one another. The one speeding ticket I had to just pay (lawyers in the area were very confused by the idea of defending a minor speeding ticket, they'd have been looking at me like I had three heads had the conversations been in person) somehow disappeared into the ether.

Lastly, many insurance companies won't raise your rates for a single ticket, but it's better to avoid having the one if you can so that you keep the freebie unused just in case you need it in the future.
posted by wierdo at 12:13 PM on June 3, 2021

Agree with everyone else. "Pre-trial conference" is something you can ask for at the traffic court date, and that's when you and the prosecutor can agree to modify to a $300 broken taillight fine or some such. Probably shouldn't DIY, though. Avvo is a good place to find traffic attorneys for that county; they'll talk or email you through the process. Expect to pay something like $400-450 for the attorney plus the higher court fee. And yes, it's worth doing this to keep your record clean.
posted by michaelh at 12:49 PM on June 3, 2021

You don't need a traffic lawyer to plead down a ticket, but if you're out of state it might be easier especially if you do not need to show up (you usually don't). One time I got caught in a speed trap going 15 over in a school zone. It was really stupid as the cities changed, changing the speed limit, the new city had a school zone and the school wasn't even visible from the street. There was a cop RIGHT at the change of speed, and I got out of it.
posted by geoff. at 1:14 PM on June 3, 2021

Mod note: From the OP:

Thanks to everyone who replied. Very helpful. Just to close this question out in case anyone else gets in the same jam - I got hold of the prosecutor for the city involved, who offered me a six month deferment plus paying the original fine. The deferment means as long as I don't break any rules in that town within the next six months no conviction will be entered and the charge related to the traffic violation will be dismissed / no reporting to DMW/insurers will occur. So that works!

posted by loup (staff) at 12:13 PM on June 16, 2021