<p>I have to add our kids when they get licensed. They can drive in our state but I have to be in the car with them. The insurance company knows the ages of our kids and charge us accordingly. The laws and rules vary by state.</p>
<p>Traffic School, hmmm. I’d ask a couple of people who’d actually gone this route in NY.</p>
<p>“Most of the time, the ticket will NOT be dismissed, but again, it is up to the individual court to decide.”</p>
<p>[New</a> York Traffic Schools Online Guide - Find NY Internet Traffic Ticket School Info - DMV.ORG](<a href=“NYS Defensive Driving Course & New York Traffic School | DMV.org”>NYS Defensive Driving Course & New York Traffic School | DMV.org)</p>
<p>See my post (on another forum, so don’t really try to find it)
titled, “Excuse me for stopping at a stop sign!”</p>
<p>I swear, while driving around my old NJ town at the speed limit (that was the problem I guess) I was being tailgated and came to a complete stop at a stop sign and the guy behind me immediately honked at me! LOL</p>
<p>
No offense taken. I actually did receive a speeding ticket once close to a small town somewhere in upstate NY. After rounding a bend on a rural road I was nailed by a radar cop who apparently can pick off as many as he wants on that stretch. It was an area with an abnormally low speed limit and, of course, a waiting cop around the bend. I went ahead and paid the fine by mail from California and didn’t try to do any fighting because I was in fact exceeding the posted speed limit even though it was abnormally low for the road. At least it was a low-cost ticket, lower than expected. Maybe they made the cost low on purpose so people will just pay them instead of fight them and waste the cop’s time when they could otherwise be out sitting around the bend writing more tickets.</p>
<p>I just can’t agree with edad, “The decision to contest or not should be based on costs and the risk of points which…”
In this case, where the OP lets us believe the driver was actually guilty(but not his fault because he can’t see well enough) I think the decision to contest or not is dependent on the driver’s integrity.</p>
<p>I’d love to be in the courtroom if the driver did make his defense; it would go something like this: “I plead not guilty. Well yes, Judge, it’s true I didn’t come to a full stop- but it’s only because I can’t see well enough to see the stop sign!” </p>
<p>It’s like the old joke about asking a kid if his dog bites…</p>
<p>I don’t want to go into particulars–and this is NOT legal advice. However, i know an attorney who does these cases and based on conversations with said attorney, the procedures within the City of New York and elsewhere in NY State are very, very different. So it matters whether your dad got the ticket in the City or elsewhere. In checking out what to do, he should be aware of that distinction. The way the cases are handled is a LOT different in the City than in the rest of the State.</p>
<p>I’m posting this just so your dad won’t ask others about their experiences dealing with tickets without realizing this.</p>
<p>Insurance rates are set by each insurance company based on its evaluation of the risks entailed. So if your parents have not specifically told the insurance company that you have a drivers license and added you to the policy as an Additional Insured, you are almost certainly not covered. Most insurance companies even state on their renewal notices something to the effect that " this policy is based on Driver X and Driver Y, no other drivers less than 25 years old in the household, etc." </p>
<p>All household members that have a driver’s license need to be disclosed to the insurance company. However, each company will have its own policies and procedures as to how it handles teen-age drivers. For example, our company – State Farm – requires us to insure each of our sons on one specific car (we have a total of 3 cars for the family) but the agent helped us choose the cars that would result in the lowest premium for us. Also, our rates were substantially reduced when they both elected to attend a college more than 125 miles from our home (without bringing a car to school) and we get discounts because they both maintain GPAs of over 3.0.</p>
<p>I’m sorry, I had to chuckle!! is it just a coincidence that there are ads for TixNix on the screen as I am reading this thread???</p>
<p>I got nailed on this once, the cop gave me a warning on the rolling (four way stop, no one around, cop was hiding just looking for people like me), but I was nailed on the registration being two days expired, successfully appealed that…</p>
<p>And just where is that cop when I get people like what Njres had?? Same people every day…let me know when you get to where you are going so that the rest of us can use YOUR road!</p>
<p>^^ The ‘TixNix’ ad isn’t a coincidence, these ads are based on context.</p>
<p>I got a ticket about 18 years ago for rolling at a stop sign. It was a very open intersection with no cars in sight on the road I was turning onto - but I did not come to a complete stop & I got a $125 ticket. You can bet I stopped fully after that!!</p>
<p>My mother-in-law had to renew her license including a driving test when she turned 70 or 75. She did a rolling stop and needless to say they didn’t renew her license. She was extremely indignant, but we were all relieved, as it turned out that was one of the first signs of impending dementia.</p>
<p>Thank you everyone for your responses. I will check out our insurance and make sure everything is set; I’ll be driving to go to work this summer. </p>
<p>I personally did not think my father had a case, but it seems he is already set on appealing the ticket. However, his intent is to have his penalty reduced if possible, not because he disagrees with the ticket in principle. I can tell you that my mother and I have been careful to make full stops at stop signs since!</p>
<p>Be on notice folks!!! Towns and cities are clearly turning to ticketing to raise revenue in this drastically shrinking economy. No surprise there. I know two people who’ve had the misfortune of being pulled over because the police randomly ran their license plate numbers on the laptop in the cruiser and discovered unresolved tickets. Apparently, the dollar threshhold [for seizing your car, or even arrest] for accumulated PARKING tickets has gotten lower. Also, police stalking for “rolling stops” have clearly increased also.</p>
<p>^^ Yes, and I would expect the revenue-generating ‘red light cameras’ to become more ubiquitous as well.</p>
<p>And “Speed Traps” are incredibly wrong too!</p>
<p>My daughter got pulled over because her tag lights were out. Her response was - "I don’t actually know what that is ", then to ask him if she could buy replacements at Walmart. I must admit I check my other lights and signals periodically but have never once, before now, thought to check my tag lights. No one we know had ever heard of someone being pulled over for tag lights. She did only get a warning though, but was amused to find the trooper had heavy metal playing in his squad car. I keep imagining if he had pulled over one of the old ladies I know from around here who would have thought they were sitting next to the devil if they’d heard that music.</p>
<p>My daughter was nearly hit yesterday–she was on her bicycle–by a driver who slowed for the stop sign and then rolled through it. She saw him slowing, assumed he would stop, and ended up having to swerve to avoid being hit. The driver: “I didn’t see you.” </p>
<p>It’s not just about other CARS.</p>
<p>My insurance company sent out a letter asking if anyone in the household had a permit! Son got his license shortly after but my guess was they were going to increase rate for the permit driver. Yikes.</p>