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Ontario|Highway Traffic ActGeneral Information 519 Why fight a traffic ticket? You may decide to fight a traffic ticket because the consequences of being convicted could be serious. If you are convicted of a traffic offence, it will affect your driving record and possibly your insurance rates.
- Penalties of traffic offences
The penalties for traffic offences can include fines, demerit points, licence suspension, and imprisonment. If you accumulate more than 15 demerit points, your licence will be suspended. If you are convicted of a traffic offence, your insurance premiums will likely go up. Therefore, it may be worthwhile to fight a traffic ticket in order to protect your driving record and to avoid or minimize the penalties of a traffic offence. If you fight a traffic ticket, you may be able to reduce the amount of the fine, or get more time to pay it, have the ticket dismissed, or plead guilty to a less serious offence.
There are several things you should consider when you decide whether to fight a traffic ticket. You should think about whether you actually committed the offence you are charged with. If you did commit the offence, did you have a good excuse or reason, and is the excuse a legal defence? You should learn about the offence you were charged with, and see what legal defences exist.
You can obtain more information about how to defend various traffic offences in the Highway Traffic Act section of Legal Line .
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