Virginia is a beautiful state with roads that meander through mountainous terrain between cities and lead to gorgeous coastlines. These roads are used by around 6 million drivers in VA alone. That does not count for the amount of interstate traffic. Every driver would have their hand on 10 and 2 on the wheel and their eyes on the road in a perfect world, but none of us are perfect. Unfortunately, distracted driving is an increasing problem with traffic cops waiting to give you a violation. At Randall, Page & Bruch, P.C., our team is here to help when you need a Virginia traffic defense attorney by your side. We have experience assisting individuals with traffic tickets throughout the Courtland, Suffolk, Emporia, and Lawrenceville areas, and we will get to work on your case immediately.
Safe points are points assigned to licenses with no traffic violations for the year. Typically, a driver gets one point a year for up to 5 years. The maximum amount of safe driving points is 5. There is no maximum amount of demerit points, but there is a minimum. The minimum amount of demerit points is 3 points. Regardless of how good of a driver you are, the DMV only cares about the demerit points. If you end up with 12 demerit points within one year, it can lead to suspending your license and potential fines from court.
Distracted driving has increased over the years. You may remember instructors telling you to avoid eating and driving or playing with the radio in driving school. As times have changed, cell phones have led to an increase in distracted driving. Virginia assigns 3 demerit points for distracted driving. For example, if you are talking on the phone, texting, recording an Instagram post or video for Tik Tok, etc. In Virginia’s Drive Smart Annual Report, it states that over 80% of all accidents, and 65% of near accidents, are due to distracted driving, such as texting or talking on smartphones, reading, or reaching for something. Distracted driving has increased so much that the whole month of September is dedicated to educating people about its dangers.
Because of this push to concentrate on distracted driving, it is common to see traffic officers pay particular attention to how drivers are driving. No one should be driving while playing with their cell phone, but we know that life happens, and sometimes emergency calls are necessary. However, if you are hit with a distracted driving ticket, and you already have other multiple traffic tickets, you may be in danger of losing your license.
You can log onto the VA DMV site to check out your points here. Do not wait to hear what the court or DMV has to say. Be proactive and use our experience traffic court attorneys to keep your license from suspension and keep you in the driver’s seat. You can contact Randall, Page & Bruch, P.C. for a free consultation of your case by clicking here or by calling 757-742-6115.
