Colorado Traffic Ticket Fines and Penalties

If you’re caught violating driving laws in Colorado, chances are you will be fined and penalized. Depending on many things (the severity of the crime, the location, and the officer’s mood that day), the punishment can vary widely. One thing’s for sure, though – between your insurance going up and the cost of the actual tickets, you could wind up driving yourself right into the poorhouse!

Colorado Point System

Every moving violation in Colorado also comes with a point value assigned to it. If you are convicted of too many infractions in a certain amount of time, you could wind up facing additional penalties, and possibly even getting your license suspended.

There are three different age brackets that Colorado uses for determining license suspension: If you are under 18 years, and you accrue 6 points in a 12-month period OR if you get 7 or more points for the duration of your license, it will be suspended. If you are between the ages of 18 and 21, and you get 9 points in 12 months, or 12 points in 24 months, or if you have 14 points for the duration of your license, it will be suspended. And adult drivers who get 12 points in 12 months, or 18 points in 24 months will also have their license suspended.

Colorado Point Values

• Speeding (5 - 9 MPH over the limit): 1 point
• Failure to yield right-of-way: 3 points
• Improper passing: 4 points
• Failure to show proof of insurance: 4 points
• Speeding (10 - 19 MPH over the limit): 4 points
• Careless driving: 4 points
• Speeding (20 - 39 MPH over the limit): 6 points
• Reckless driving: 8 points
• Driving under the influence of drugs or alcohol: 12 points
• Speed contests: 12 points
• Evading an officer: 12 points
• Speeding (40+ MPH over the limit): 12 points
• Leaving an accident scene: 12 points

Types of Suspension

There are four kinds of driver license suspension in Colorado. They are as follows:

• License Suspension: This is the most lenient of the suspensions. It’s only a temporary withdrawal of a person’s driving privileges. Once the period of suspension is up, the license can be reinstated.
• License Revocation: This renders your Colorado driver’s license invalid, and it cannot be reissued until the driver passes their written and driving skills tests again.
• License Denial: If you do not yet have your license, a denial prevents you from obtaining it for a certain period of time.
• License Cancellation: This is when your Colorado driver’s license is voided.

There are also many other reasons a person’s license could be suspended, regardless of age. Among those reasons are: refusing a sobriety test, getting convicted of a DWI, failure to get proper car insurance, and more.

Extra Penalties for Colorado Drivers

Thought that was it? Nope. If you’re underage and caught with possession of alcohol or with a blood-alcohol content of 0.02% or greater (or if you get a DUI), your license will be revoked. Colorado is a zero-tolerance state when it comes to drinking and driving.

If you’re a commercial driver and you are convicted of a moving traffic violation, you have 30 days to notify your employer. It doesn’t matter if you weren’t on the clock, if you were driving a company vehicle, or even if it happened out of state.

There are also certain offenses that carry with them mandatory license disqualification. If you’re convicted of a DUI, leaving the scene of an accident, or refusing to take a chemical test, your commercial driver’s license will be revoked.

If you obey the law, none of this should be a problem. But if, like many of us, you tend to speed here and there, it’s better to know what you could be getting yourself into.