How bad is a speeding ticket for insurance?

When you get a speeding ticket, the fine isn't all you have to worry about. That ticket could affect your wallet for years to come in the form of increased insurance premiums.

How Much Can a Speeding Ticket Increase Your Premiums?

On average, a single speeding ticket can cause your insurance premiums to jump by 20% to 30%. According to The Zebra’s 2020 State of Auto Insurance Report, a speeding ticket for going just 11-15 miles over the limit can increase your premium by 20%. That may not sound too bad, but let’s break it down into real numbers.

For example, in Texas, getting a ticket for going 16 miles over the speed limit can cost you an additional $600 over three years for full coverage, according to NerdWallet. In fact, the average increase in car insurance premiums after a single speeding ticket across the U.S. is about $460 per year.

If you add that up, a speeding ticket could cost you $1,380 more over three years in insurance premiums alone.

Factors That Determine How Much Your Insurance Increases

While speeding tickets often result in higher insurance rates, the extent of the increase depends on several factors:

How Fast You Were Going: Speeding just a few miles over the limit might not impact your rates much, but significant speeding violations (20+ mph over) can result in far steeper premium hikes. For example, in New York, driving 30 mph over the limit can raise your insurance premium by as much as 40%.
Your Driving History: If this is your first ticket, you might only see a small increase, or none at all in some cases. However, multiple tickets in a short period will make you a high-risk driver, resulting in dramatic increases—up to 50% or more for repeat offenses.
State Laws: How much your premiums rise also depends on where you live. States like California and Florida are known for having stricter penalties for traffic violations, and that can reflect in higher premium increases after a ticket.
Your Insurance Company: Insurers treat speeding tickets differently. Some may be more lenient for minor violations, while others take a hard line. For example, some insurers may simply remove a safe driving discount rather than imposing a steep increase, while others may raise rates significantly for even small violations.

The Long-Term Impact on Your Premiums

A speeding ticket doesn’t just sting your premiums once—it can affect your rates for years. Typically, a ticket stays on your driving record for 3 to 5 years, depending on your state. During that time, you can expect your insurance premiums to remain elevated.

Let’s consider an example: if your premium increases by $400 annually due to a speeding ticket, and it stays on your record for 3 years, you’re looking at a total increase of $1,200 over that period. That’s on top of the initial fine for the speeding ticket itself.

How a Speeding Ticket Affects Discounts

In addition to the premium hike, a speeding ticket could also cost you any safe driver discounts you might have been enjoying. Many insurers, including MapleCoverage, offer discounts for drivers with clean records. Losing that discount could add another 5% to 15% to your total premium increase, depending on your policy.

How Multiple Tickets Can Seriously Raise Your Rates

The real trouble comes when you rack up multiple tickets in a short span. A single speeding ticket might raise your rates by 20%, but a second or third ticket can send that increase skyrocketing. According to Insurance.com, getting two tickets for going 11 mph or more over the limit can increase your premium by an average of 43%.

In some cases, multiple violations can even lead to insurers categorizing you as a high-risk driver, meaning you could be paying double or triple your previous premium. In extreme cases, insurers may refuse to renew your policy altogether.

Can You Fight a Speeding Ticket?

If you believe the ticket was unjustified, you can contest it in court. Successfully fighting a speeding ticket and getting it dismissed can prevent it from appearing on your driving record and impacting your insurance rates. However, this process takes time and might not always be successful.

Some states also offer ticket deferral programs for first-time offenders. This option allows you to avoid having the ticket added to your record if you meet certain conditions, like staying ticket-free for a designated period.

How to Minimize the Impact of a Speeding Ticket on Your Insurance

Even though a speeding ticket will likely raise your premiums, there are ways to reduce the financial impact:

Take a Defensive Driving Course: In some states, completing a defensive driving course can reduce the points added to your license or even dismiss the ticket, helping to minimize its impact on your insurance premiums.
Bundle Your Policies: At MapleCoverage, we offer discounts for bundling auto insurance with other types of coverage, such as homeowners or renters insurance. Bundling can help offset the premium increase from a speeding ticket.
Increase Your Deductible: Opting for a higher deductible can lower your monthly premiums, balancing out the cost of the ticket.
Maintain a Clean Record: Moving forward, avoid any additional tickets or accidents. Over time, maintaining a clean record will help your insurance premiums return to normal.

The Bottom Line

A speeding ticket can have long-term consequences on your insurance premiums, with increases ranging from 20% to 30% for a single ticket and much more for multiple violations. The real cost of speeding doesn’t just come from the fine—it’s the ongoing hit to your insurance premiums that can add up to thousands of dollars over time.

At MapleCoverage, we understand that things happen. We take into account factors beyond your speeding ticket, such as accident history, to build you a plan that actually reflects your driving safety. Our team will work with you to find the right coverage options to keep you insured without breaking the bank.