Oh great first ticket. Advice?

[oleg1227]

Well I was hoping I would'nt have to create a thread here but oh well.

Was going on Mohawk Rd E from Upper Wellington towards Upper James at about 8:30 am today. He clocked me at 79 km/h in a 50 km/h zone. Was reduced to 15 over (65km/h in a 50 km/h zone) which totalled to a 52.50$ fine with no points (opposed to 2 points and 100+$ fine).

Conversation:

Officer: Sir, you were going 79 in a 50 zone
Me: *silent
Officer: License and Registration
Me: May I get off my bike?
Officer: Yes
Officer: Have you have previous tickets in the last 2 years?
Me: No

Well that is as far as I remembered it. He went in wrote the ticket, handed it to me and went back to the road. I did notice his radar saying 79 and didnt recognize any errors in the ticket. I guess no break for me today

So I just had 2 questions from ticket and insurance gurus:

How much will my insurance go up by and should I even tell them about it?
Should I fight it? (Probably a lost cause)

PS: I did recognize the cop from somewhere. Its like one of those times where you remember a face but cant remember the name or where you met that person!

Thanks for the help and any advice!

[GreyGhost]

How much will my insurance go up by and should I even tell them about it?
Should I fight it? (Probably a lost cause)

Your insurance may go up by 10-15% or it may not change, it depends on your insurance company. The reduced ticket is exactly the same in the eyes of insurance as a 45 km/h over ticket.

Fight every ticket, most people that win, win because the cop doesn't show not because they actually had a case.

[oleg1227]

Your insurance may go up by 10-15% or it may not change, it depends on your insurance company. The reduced ticket is exactly the same in the eyes of insurance as a 45 km/h over ticket.

Fight every ticket, most people that win, win because the cop doesn't show not because they actually had a case.

Ahh ****...well if I do fight it and he does show up dont you think it will be a bit hard to win the case? I mean how much lower can they drop it?

[GreyGhost]

For the insurance company not to care, it has to completely disappear. See the sticky threads on fighting tickets. Maybe there were other vehicles around that the radar could have tagged, maybe he forgot to calibrate the radar/lidar that day, etc. There are holes that can help you, read the sticky, request disclosure and go from there.

You should know that if the R is circled on your ticket, there is a possibility that your ticket will be raised to 29 over in court. It supposedly doesn't happen frequently, but it is a possibility. In my world, the gamble is worth it as worst case you have to pay ~$150 fine, best case the ticket and any potential insurance hikes for the next 3 years on all of your vehicles disappear.

[oleg1227]

For the insurance company not to care, it has to completely disappear. See the sticky threads on fighting tickets. Maybe there were other vehicles around that the radar could have tagged, maybe he forgot to calibrate the radar/lidar that day, etc. There are holes that can help you, read the sticky, request disclosure and go from there.

You should know that if the R is circled on your ticket, there is a possibility that your ticket will be raised to 29 over in court. It supposedly doesn't happen frequently, but it is a possibility. In my world, the gamble is worth it as worst case you have to pay ~$150 fine, best case the ticket and any potential insurance hikes for the next 3 years on all of your vehicles disappear.

Im reading the sticky as we speak. But if I do end up losing the gamble what are the chances of it being bumped back to 29 over with 2 points. R isnt circled as it looks. I mean that would cause a greater spike difference in insurances right?

[macrider]

Go to court and request a trial date, then you have 4-6 months to figure out a defence, read the sticky carefully,there are lots of ways to fight and win this.
Its worth it for insurance reasons.
Fight every ticket.

[GreyGhost]

Im reading the sticky as we speak. But if I do end up losing the gamble what are the chances of it being bumped back to 29 over with 2 points. R isnt circled as it looks. I mean that would cause a greater spike difference in insurances right?

Any speeding ticket from 1 over to 45 over (or 49 over depending on insurance company) is exactly the same ticket. It is one minor offense, following too closely, failure to yield and most other tickets are also in the same category.

Major tickets are racing, careless, DUI etc. They are treated much differently by insurance companies.

[oleg1227]

Any speeding ticket from 1 over to 45 over (or 49 over depending on insurance company) is exactly the same ticket. It is one minor offense, following too closely, failure to yield and most other tickets are also in the same category.

Major tickets are racing, careless, DUI etc. They are treated much differently by insurance companies.

Thanks, I think I will fight it. And im guessing number of points deducted if its a minor offence is treated the same.

Go to court and request a trial date, then you have 4-6 months to figure out a defence, read the sticky carefully,there are lots of ways to fight and win this.
Its worth it for insurance reasons.
Fight every ticket.

Thanks man!

[El Zilcho]

Thanks, I think I will fight it. And im guessing number of points deducted if its a minor offence is treated the same.

Most paralegals/traffic lawyers will offer you a free consultation regarding your options. They won't promise anything (at least they shouldn't), but they will tell you what choices you have. If you have a clean record, I'd say go fight it. Personally, I recommend Redline.

For insurance purposes the number of demerit points is irrelevant. They have their own classification of offences.

[oleg1227]

Most paralegals/traffic lawyers will offer you a free consultation regarding your options. They won't promise anything (at least they shouldn't), but they will tell you what choices you have. If you have a clean record, I'd say go fight it. Personally, I recommend Redline.

For insurance purposes the number of demerit points is irrelevant. They have their own classification of offences.

Thanks. As far as I know I turned left from Wellington onto Mohawk E and passed a car on the left of me (only car on the stretch) and about 2 seconds later I was pulled over to the right. My bike has a lot of vibration though since its old. Can I use the fact that vibration of the forks and wheel going faster (not sure of the correctness but I read it somewhere) cause an incorrect reading?

[El Zilcho]

Can I use the fact that vibration of the forks and wheel going faster (not sure of the correctness but I read it somewhere) cause an incorrect reading?

That I don't know. This is why I'd recommend talking to an expert. They would know what would be available as a defense.

[GreyGhost]

My bike has a lot of vibration though since its old. Can I use the fact that vibration of the forks and wheel going faster (not sure of the correctness but I read it somewhere) cause an incorrect reading?

Really really unlikely that this would fly. Normally excuses like this are used as hail mary attempts.

Honestly your best bet is to request disclosure and hope they don't send it. When you get to court (make sure you know if the cop is present) and then say that they have not provided you with the requested information to prepare your defense. That buys you a new trial date and another opportunity for the cop to be away. This time may also be eligible to help support an 11b defense (as long as you request disclosure soon).

Good luck.

[macrider]

Thanks. As far as I know I turned left from Wellington onto Mohawk E and passed a car on the left of me (only car on the stretch) and about 2 seconds later I was pulled over to the right. My bike has a lot of vibration though since its old. Can I use the fact that vibration of the forks and wheel going faster (not sure of the correctness but I read it somewhere) cause an incorrect reading?

No, the condition of your bike will not work in court, Its like saying "my speedometer wasnt working your honour, and I did not know how fast I was going".
You will get laughed out of court after paying a hefty fine.
There are other ways to fight it.

[El Zilcho]

No, the condition of your bike will not work in court, Its like saying "my speedometer wasnt working your honour, and I did not know how fast I was going".
You will get laughed out of court after paying a hefty fine.
There are other ways to fight it.

I think what he meant was that the mechanical condition of his bike could have caused the radar to get an incorrect reading. Even if it was theoretically possible, I doubt that the judge would want to go into such details.

[Rob MacLennan]

Thanks. As far as I know I turned left from Wellington onto Mohawk E and passed a car on the left of me (only car on the stretch) and about 2 seconds later I was pulled over to the right. My bike has a lot of vibration though since its old. Can I use the fact that vibration of the forks and wheel going faster (not sure of the correctness but I read it somewhere) cause an incorrect reading?

Start making comments about excessive vibration and the JP will ask why you're riding such an obviously unsafe vehicle. Don't open a door that you can't afford to have someone walk through.

[oleg1227]

One more random question. How long does the officer have to write his notes used for disclosure and how long does it take him to fill everything out. Do they finalise the notes after each ticket or at the end of the shift?