Even if you’ve been lucky and avoided tickets for years, being pulled over for speeding or drunken driving could cost you plenty. Fines, legal fees, and hiring an expert witness can add up to a “financial mugging.” In First-time driving offenders don’t get off easy , AOLautos writes:
Speeding fines and penalties are, excuse the expression, all over the map; how fast you were going or where you were speeding (school zone or construction zone for example) and whether you are a first-time offender all factor in. More than half the states use a points system to record driver infraction data — the more points, the higher the fines and possible jail terms.
Although Forbes Magazine reports that the national median for a first-time offender’s fine is $200, many states are quite entrepreneurial in their penalties for first-time speeding-related offenses:
• In Georgia, first-time speeders can be fined up to $1,000 and sentenced to 12 months in jail.
• In Nevada, first-time speeders can be fined up to $1,000 and sentenced to six months in jail.