Looking for a Driving Safety Course?
We offer a few driving safety courses for Texas drivers to choose from. Our courses are approved by the Texas Department of Licensing and Regulation, which means that no matter where you live in Texas, our defensive driving courses will work for you!
Quick vocabulary note, because Texas uses several names for the same thing: defensive driving, driving safety course, and DDC all refer to the same six hour, TDLR approved program. Texas law sets six hours as the minimum length, so no legitimate course is shorter, and the state sets a price floor too, which is why you will see the lowest price allowed by law rather than a race to the bottom. Whichever name your court or insurer uses, the course below is the one they mean.
Most drivers land here for one of three reasons: a ticket that needs dismissing, an insurance bill that could be smaller, or a court or employer that requires a driving safety course. The same course handles all three, but the paperwork differs by goal, so let us help you find the path that is right for you!
Need to Get a Ticket Dismissed?
If you’ve gotten a traffic citation, our defensive driving course is the course you’ll want to take. Here are the important things to know about getting a ticket dismissed with our course:
- It’s online. Our defensive driving course is ready to go with you wherever and whenever you want to learn. We’ll send your certificate of completion to you for free via email once you have completed the course.
- It’s six hours long (the shortest course approved by the state of Texas).
- You can learn at your own pace. Take the class in one day and be done or break it up into several learning sessions. Your progress will be automatically saved as you go.
- Retake quizzes as needed. You’ll be able to take the chapter quizzes as many times as you need, and there’s no final exam to study for!
- It’s available in three formats. Our defensive driving course is designed to accommodate multiple learning preferences. Choose between our text course, our video course, or our audio course.
Who Qualifies for Dismissal
You qualify to dismiss a Texas ticket with defensive driving if you hold a valid non-commercial driver’s license, your violation is an eligible moving violation, and you have not used a driving safety course for dismissal in the 12 months before the offense. Courts also apply a few standard exclusions: the ticket cannot be for speeding 25 mph or more over the limit, the violation cannot have occurred in a construction zone with workers present, and you cannot have been driving a commercial vehicle or hold a commercial license. Individual courts can add conditions, so your citation and the court clerk are always the final word. Our guide to which tickets qualify covers the edge cases.
How the Process Works
Dismissal takes five moves, and the order matters:
- Request permission by your appearance date. Contact the court on your citation by phone, in writing on the back of the ticket, or in person, and ask to take defensive driving. This must happen by the appearance date printed on the ticket.
- Enter a plea of guilty or no contest and pay the court’s fees. This elects the dismissal option. The court then gives you a completion window, commonly around 90 days.
- Complete the course. Enroll, finish your six hours, and your electronic certificate is delivered the moment you pass.
- Order your Type 3A certified driving record. Texas courts require this record alongside your certificate to confirm you have not used the dismissal option in the past 12 months. Our record combo bundles it with the course so both arrive together.
- Submit both documents to the court by the deadline. Once the court processes your paperwork, the ticket is dismissed and the violation never reaches your record.
One warning worth its own sentence: if your certificate and record do not reach the court in time, the dismissal falls through and the ticket is processed as an ordinary conviction. Enroll as soon as the court says yes, order the record at the same time, and set a reminder a week before your deadline. Our step-by-step guide to getting a dismissal walks the whole thing in detail.
Why Dismissal Beats Paying the Ticket
Texas repealed its driver’s license point system, so violations no longer add points, but that does not make a ticket harmless. Convictions stay on your record where insurers and courts can see them, and too many moving violations in a short period can still trigger a license suspension. Dismissal keeps the conviction off your record entirely, which is exactly what protects your insurance rate. The one-time cost of the course, the court’s fees, and the driving record is usually a fraction of what a conviction would quietly collect from your premium over the years it stays visible.
Taking Defensive Driving to Get an Insurance Discount?
Did you know that most insurance companies offer significant discounts to drivers who voluntarily take a defensive driving class? The process is easy: simply contact your insurance provider and ask if they offer a discount for taking defensive driving. If so, sign up for our defensive driving course. Once you’ve completed it, we’ll send you a certificate of completion that you can send to your insurer to get a discount! Taking the insurance course is simple and could save you money.
Two details save drivers a headache here. First, discount amounts and terms vary by carrier, so make that phone call before you enroll rather than after. Second, one completion cannot do two jobs: if you took the course to dismiss a ticket, that certificate is spoken for, and a separate voluntary completion is what earns the insurance discount. Plenty of Texans take the course for dismissal one year and again voluntarily a few years later for the savings.
What the Course Covers
The Texas driving safety curriculum is set by the state, so every approved course teaches the same core material: Texas traffic law, crash prevention, the effects of alcohol and drugs on driving, occupant protection, sharing the road, work zone safety, and the move over or slow down law. What varies between providers is the delivery. We present it through short interactive chapters in your choice of text, video, or audio, with progress saved automatically so you can stop on Tuesday and resume Saturday without losing your place.
Defensive Driving or Deferred Disposition?
Deferred disposition is the other common way Texans keep a ticket off their record: you plead guilty or no contest, pay a fee, and complete a probation period without new violations, after which the charge is dismissed. Defensive driving trades that probation window for six hours of coursework, which is often the better fit if you want the matter closed on your own schedule instead of holding your breath for months. Some judges pair the two or steer certain drivers toward one option, so ask the clerk what your court allows.
How Much Does Texas Defensive Driving Cost?
The total comes in three parts: the course fee, the court’s fees, and the driving record fee. The state sets a legal minimum price for the course and we charge the lowest price allowed by law, so the course is the most predictable line item. Court fees are set by each individual court, paid when you elect the dismissal option, and are the largest and most variable piece; your citation or the court clerk will have the exact figure. The Type 3A record is a small additional charge, on its own or bundled with the course. Weigh all three against a conviction sitting on your record where your insurer can see it for years, and dismissal is usually the cheaper path by a wide margin.
Choose the #1 Provider of Defensive Driving in Texas
I Drive Safely has provided top-quality driving safety courses to millions of drivers across the U.S. Our customer support team is standing by 7 days a week to make sure your experience with us is a great one; give us a call if you need assistance and we’ll be here to help!
And take approval seriously, because courts do. Only completions from TDLR approved providers count for dismissal, and you can verify any provider’s status directly with the TDLR. We encourage the check: our course is TDLR approved, accepted by all Texas courts, and pairs the state’s shortest allowed course with the lowest price allowed by law, free electronic certificate delivery, and the court required Type 3A record in the same checkout.
If you have any questions about any of our courses – get in touch today.
Frequently Asked Questions
How long does Texas defensive driving take?
Six hours, the minimum length Texas law allows. The online course is self paced, so you can complete it in one sitting or across several days, and your progress saves automatically between sessions.
Do I still pay my ticket if I take defensive driving?
You pay the court’s fees when you elect the dismissal option, and those are not refunded. What you avoid is the conviction itself: the violation never reaches your driving record, which is what protects your insurance rate.
How often can I use defensive driving to dismiss a ticket in Texas?
Once every 12 months. Courts check your Type 3A driving record to confirm you have not completed a driving safety course for dismissal within the 12 months before your offense date.
If you have any questions about any of our courses – get in touch today.
