Frequently Asked Questions for Voluntary Defensive Driving in Washington
Course Information
- Is this course approved?
- Which defensive driving courses do you offer in Washington?
- Can I take a defensive driving course if I need to get a traffic ticket dismissed?
- I'm not sure if I'm eligible to take Washington defensive driving. How do I find out?
- How often can I take defensive driving for ticket deferral?
- How long will this course take?
- What types of things will I study?
- Do I have to take a final exam?
- What is the testing and grading policy?
- Is there any way I can fail the course?
- Why does this course have timers?
- Is there a time limit to complete this course?
- Can I earn an insurance discount?
Course Information
Yes! Our Washington defensive driving courses are approved by individual courts throughout the state for ticket deferral; our voluntary defensive driving course can be taken to help you get a discount on auto insurance. Make sure you check with your insurance provider to see how much of a discount you’ll receive.
Along with the voluntary defensive driving course, we offer courses for drivers who may want or need to attend traffic school as a result of receiving one or more traffic tickets:
The Level 1 Washington 4-Hour Defensive Driving course — For drivers who have received a traffic ticket, and have been referred by the court to take a basic 4-hour course.
The Level 2 Washington 8-Hour Defensive Driving course — For drivers who have received a traffic ticket, and have already taken a 4-hour course; or for habitual traffic offenders who have received a court-order for an 8-hour course.
The state of Washington does not dismiss traffic tickets, but with your court’s permission, you may defer your ticket and prevent your citation from being reported to the Department of Licensing by taking a Washington defensive driving course. This would prevent your insurance rates from rising.
There are no requirements for your voluntary defensive driving course.
At some point, you may want or need to take a defensive driving course to defer a ticket. We have all of the eligibility requirements and steps to take for the Washington defensive driving courses listed on our How It Works page.
The state of Washington only allows you to defer your ticket once every 7 years.
The voluntary defensive driving course is 8 hours long, per Washington state requirements.
You may work through the course at your own pace. Take it all in one day, or spread it out over a longer period of time – the choice is yours!
Each course is broken down into 8 chapters that focus on a single topic pertaining to Washington driving and traffic laws. These topics include:
- Highway safety
- Alcohol- and drug-impaired driving
- State traffic laws
- Driving emergencies
- Vehicle maintenance
Yes, you do. All of the courses feature a 40-question multiple-choice final exam, which requires an 80% score or higher to pass. But don’t stress! If you don’t pass the final, you’ll be able to retake it until you do!
Each chapter contains a quiz that tests how well you retained the most important points from each chapter. Each quiz has 10 questions, and you must score an 80% or higher to move onto the next chapter. You will be provided with feedback on any incorrect answers, and you may retake your quizzes an unlimited amount of times.
You will then take your final exam at the end of your course. You will need to score an 80% or higher, and you may retake the exam again if you do not pass on your first try.
Absolutely not! You have unlimited retakes on your chapter quizzes and final exam, so if you fail to achieve a passing score on your first try, you may simply take it again.
This course is required by Washington law to span 8 hours in length. To comply with this law, we (and all other online defensive driving schools) are required to place timers on each page of the course. We realize that some students may read faster than the timer will permit you to advance, but state regulations prohibit us from changing this function. The timers cannot be disabled for any reason.
You’ll need to complete the course within 180 days of registration. Any student who has not successfully completed the course within 180 days will have their access terminated without notice and will not be eligible for a refund.
Many insurance providers in Washington will reward drivers who voluntarily complete a traffic school course by reducing their insurance premium for a certain amount of time! By taking our voluntary defensive driving course, you could save as much as 10% on your insurance rate.
