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Getting a speeding ticket can be frustrating.
Whether you are late to a meeting, want to get home early to make dinner, or simply aren’t aware of the maximum speed limit, a police officer could pull you over at any moment. After that, you might end up looking at a speeding ticket that costs several hundreds of dollars.
In this article we are going to learn about Washington State’s speeding ticket laws.
Understanding them will help you fight them and win in traffic court.
How Much is a Speeding Ticket in Washington State?
The cost of a speeding ticket in Washington State is based on a few factors. First of all, the ticket amounts depend on whether the speed limit was over or below 40 miles per hour. Secondly, the difference between how fast you were going and the official speed limit also influences how much a ticket would cost.
In general, the maximum speed limits in Washington State are as follows:
- 25 mph: City and town streets
- 50 mph: County roads
- 60 mph: State highways
Therefore, the cost of your ticket depends on where you were speeding. Equally as important is that local governments can increase or decrease the limits above. You should keep this in mind if you get a ticket while driving out-of-town.
Here are the amounts of speeding tickets on roads and streets where the limit is less than 40 mph. They are based on how fast over the limit you were going:
- 1 to 5 mph above the limit: $125
- 6 to 10 mph: $136
- 11 to 15 mph: $166
- 16 to 20 mph: $207
- 21 to 25 mph: $259
- 26 to 30 mph: $310
- 31 to 35 mph: $361
- 35+ mph: $423
On the other hand, here are the speeding ticket amounts when the limit is over 40 mph:
- 1 to 5 mph above the limit: $105
- 6 to 10 mph: $125
- 11 to 15 mph: $156
- 16 to 20 mph: $187
- 21 to 25 mph: $218
- 26 to 30 mph: $259
- 31 to 35 mph: $310
- 36 to 40 mph: $361
- 40+ mph: $423
Above all, the above fines would double if the speeding violation took place nearby a school, playground, or construction zone. For example, if you were stopped for going 10 miles above the limit in a school zone, the ticket would cost $272 (or double the typical $136 amount, assuming that the maximum speed was less than 40 mph).
How Many Points Will I Get On My License?
Washington State does not have a points system. However, you may still get your license suspended when you get too many tickets within certain periods of time. They are broken down as follows:
- 6 violations within 12 months
- 7 violations within 24 months
- 1 violation during the probation period
It is important to remember that the suspension applies to all moving violations, and not just speeding tickets. Passing through a red traffic light and not wearing a seatbelt are examples of moving violations.
Before suspending your license, the state would typically send you a warning letter in the mail. This happens when you get close to reaching the maximum number of violations that are outlined above. For instance, you’ll get a warning letter when you reach 5 violations within a 12-month period.
Once your license is suspended, you cannot drive for 60 days. After that, you enter a 1 year probation period.
During this time, you are allowed to drive, but any additional violations will cause your license to be suspended for 30 days. Moreover, your 1-year probation period would restart once the 30 days are over.
To illustrate, here is an example:
- June 30: A driver receives their seventh moving violation within a year. The state suspends their license for 60 days.
- July 31: The driver may drive again and their 1-year probation period starts at this date. It ends on July 31st of the following year.
- October 1: If the driver gets caught speeding (or committing any other type of moving violation), their license is suspended for 30 days (until October 31st).
- October 31: The driver is allowed to drive, but their probation period restarts on this date and ends on October 31st of the following year.
In Washington State, a driver is considered a habitual traffic offender (HTO) when they get 20 or more tickets for moving violations (including speeding tickets) within a 5 year period.
If you get an HTO designation, your license will be fully revoked (and not just suspended). To get it back, you need to request a hearing and ask for your license to be reinstated.
Offenders must wait for 4 years to pass since they became an HTO before requesting a hearing. Moreover, they need to prove that they haven’t driven during the previous 2 years. If the reinstatement request is rejected, the HTO must wait a full year before asking for another hearing.
How Long Will a Speeding Ticket Stay On My Record in Washington State?
Speeding tickets, alongside other infractions, remain on your driving record for 5 years in Washington State. The timeline starts when a court convicts you of the violation, rather than on the date that you got the ticket.
A failure to appear (FTA) in court to respond to or dispute a speeding ticket would show up on your record for up to 10 years. Nonetheless, you can remove the FTA by resolving it with the court. Once you do so, only the speeding ticket will be on your record, which, as mentioned earlier, stays there for 5 years.
It is important to note that, when you apply for or renew your car insurance, only FTAs and speeding tickets that you got in the last 3 years will show up on your driving record.
Will a Speeding Ticket Affect My Car Insurance in Washington State?
Your car insurance premiums are most likely to become more expensive after you get a speeding ticket. In comparison to a clean driving record, here is the average increase in premiums that a single speeding ticket would result in, broken down by insurance company:
- Allstate: $353.71 per year or $29.48 per month
- American Family: $670.50 per year or $55.88 per month
- Farmers: $590.52 per year or $49.21 per month
- Geico: No increase
- Liberty Mutual: $490.36 per year or $40.86 per month
- Nationwide: $153.87 per year or $12.82 per month
- Progressive: $538.36 per year or $44.86 per month
- State Farm: $226.19 per year or $18.85 per month
- USAA: $302.45 per year or $25.20 per month
After you get your first speeding ticket, your annual and monthly car insurance premiums would go up by an average of $369.55 and $30.80, respectively. To clarify, that’s an increase of 15%, which adds up to more than $1,100 over the course of 3 years.
Should I Fight or Pay the Ticket?
Although the expense of hiring an attorney may deter many drivers from fighting the ticket in court, the long-term costs of a speeding violation makes working with a lawyer worthwhile. This is especially true when we consider the extra amount of money that you would pay in both insurance premiums and to cover the actual ticket.
On average, lawyers will charge you $155 to help you fight a speeding ticket. The typical cost range is between $50 and $250.
This number reflects the average across the United States, and it varies from one state and county to another. For example, an attorney in a big city will certainly charge more than an attorney that serves a rural area.
Washington State is not an exception to this. Traffic lawyers in the Seattle metropolitan area will likely charge you more than those located in less-populated counties. Attorneys in middle-sized cities, such as Spokane, may be more costly than their counterparts in rural central Washington.
You should also take court fees into account, which are similarly different from one location to another.
Nevertheless, even a lawyer that charges close to $250 would cost less than paying an extra $400 in insurance premiums per year after getting a single speeding ticket.
In short, most people will find it financially advantageous to hire an attorney and fight the violation rather than paying for the ticket and additional insurance expenses.
Tips to Fight Washington Speeding Tickets
In Washington State, patrol officers are allowed to use three types of “speed traps” to detect drivers that are going above the speed limit:
- Measured Courses
- Speed Measuring Devices
- Timing from Aircraft
However, law enforcement officers must follow certain requirements when they rely on speed traps to issue tickets. If these rules aren’t met, the court would not accept the evidence. In other words, you can use this as an argument to fight a speeding ticket in court.
How to Beat Radar Guns
Under Washington State’s laws, officers must regularly ensure that radar guns are accurate. Otherwise, these devices cannot be used against you as evidence.
Based on that, the main way to beat radar guns is to ask for proof that the device was tested for accuracy before you got your traffic ticket. Washington State Patrol’s protocols require speed measuring devices be tested and certified every two years (if not more often).
Here is how you can get information about a radar gun’s testing and accuracy certification:
- Use the Washington State Patrol’s website to find these details about the radar gun that was used to determine that you were speeding. To do so, you need to get the ‘Device Identifier/Tag Number’.
- Subpoena the officer that issued the ticket to get the radar gun’s information. After that, determine whether the device was recently tested or not. Just as importantly, if you don’t get a response to your subpoena, the court is more likely to rule in your favor and dismiss the ticket.
A police officer or state trooper can deploy other methods to determine that you were speeding, such as timing from an aircraft. To do so, they must similarly demonstrate that the devices that they used are compliant with the accuracy and certification rules.
How to Beat Visual Estimations
Law enforcement can rely on visual estimates to identify drivers who are going above the speed limit. More specifically, officers can calculate how long it took you to pass through the beginning and end points of a “speed trap” to determine how fast you are going.
Yet there are certain rules that they must follow. For an area to constitute a “speed trap”, it must meet these requirements:
- The highway/road section must be accurately measured in length or have clearly designated starting and ending points.
- The officer who issued the ticket must be able to visually see the start and end points of the “speed trap”.
- A “speed trap” cannot be shorter than a quarter of a mile.
Just as with a radar gun, you can request records that prove that the “speed trap” in which you were pulled over meets the above requirements. If it violates any of them, the court will not accept the officer’s visual estimation as evidence, and therefore dismiss your ticket.
How to Beat Police Pacing Methods
Most police officers and troopers use speed monitoring devices when pacing a driver. They might also record their vehicle’s speed while following yours to prove that you drove at a rate that’s faster than the maximum limit.
Whether an officer used a device or simply paced your car, they must follow certain protocols. If you can prove that they violated any pacing laws, the outcome in traffic court will very likely be in your favor.
Ask for All the Evidence the Other Side Has
Based on the methods that law enforcement used to determine that you were speeding, ask for proof that they were compliant with the rules above. You could also request access to any other types of evidence, such as video recordings and photographs.
A lot of this information is usually found on the ticket. However, as mentioned earlier, you may subpoena the officer to get these details. After that, you can prepare your defense in traffic court accordingly.
Using WinIt to Fight a Washington Speeding Ticket
Whether you just got your ticket or already have a hearing date scheduled, WinIt’s partnered attorneys will provide you with the legal representation that you need. Above all, you can browse different lawyers’ services and access quotes that are specific to your case at no cost to you.
To get started, all you need to do is download the WinIt app and take a picture of your speeding ticket. Next, you can compare attorney fees and gain access to top legal representation at particularly low rates.
Already, we helped our users save over $10 million in driving and traffic tickets.
Do you need help with fighting a speeding ticket in Washington State? Click here and get started now.
