Why would I hire an attorney when it’s just cheaper to pay the traffic ticket?

Hi, my name is Heather Ford, and I am a traffic attorney based out of the city of New Orleans. Today I’d like to discuss a question many people have: Why should I hire a traffic attorney when it might be just cheaper to pay the ticket?

To get back to the question, why should you hire someone when it might be cheaper to just pay a ticket? The real issue in answering that question is not about but the future.

What do I mean about today vs. tomorrow? For example, I spoke to a potential client last week, and I told him how much it was going to cost to represent him as compared to just paying the traffic ticket. For “today,” representation would cost slightly more than the ticket, and understandably, the client was really concerned. Last week, I also worked with another client where we had to re-open a traffic ticket that had already been paid because it was impacting the client’s “tomorrow,” aka his ability to get a job.

So, really, that’s the thing: Sometimes we can’t see today what can potentially come up in the future.

In the future, maybe you’ll be working at a job where your employer wants to give you a company car or where driving is part of your duties. In that case, when the employer runs your driving report, all the sudden, this ticket that you paid two years ago can be problematic and impair your ability to hold these positions.

Also, what we often see as a “tomorrow” concern is insurance. You might see the situation simply, in that you pay the ticket, you move on, and it’s no big deal. But then, if we fast-forward four or five months, you’re receiving your insurance renewal in the mail and discover that your rates have gone up 20%-40%!

What I’d like everyone to see is that a small investment in the first place when it’s time to resolve the ticket might save you hundreds or thousands of dollars over the next few years, which is what happens when insurance rates spike because of a ticket.

So, when you’re evaluating your choices about how to handle a ticket, particularly if that ticket is for a moving violation, shoot me a text and I will be happy to answer any questions especially since a moving-violation can really impact you in the future.

You might also consider that, if you would like to become an Uber or Lyft driver, violations on your driving record will impact your ability to work those type of positions. So, be very careful about simply paying a traffic ticket because you think you’re saving money since it’s cheaper today than paying for representation. Tomorrow might come at too high of a price, and you may find it too late to manage the costs of that ticket, especially if the resolution requires you to get an expungement.

 So again, if you have any questions, my name is Heather Ford, the traffic ticket lady. Feel free to text or call me or you can go to my website to schedule a free session for a more extended call to talk about your traffic tickets or a suspended license.

Thank you, and have a good day.