If you received a ticket in California, you may be able to take an online traffic school course to mask your ticket and keep points from going
on your driving record. That means that insurance providers will not see your ticket and your insurance will not go up as a result.
Am I Eligible for Traffic School?
You are generally eligible for traffic school if you meet the following requirements:
- You have a valid driver license. In most cases, you must have a regular (Class C) driver license. You can check which class you have by looking at the
upper right corner of your driver license. Drivers with out-of-state licenses are eligible as long as they meet the rest of the requirements.
- You got a ticket for a moving violation. You must have received a ticket for a moving violation that is assigned only one point. Examples of moving
violations include speeding, failing to stop at a stop sign, or failing to yield the right-of-way. You are not eligible to take traffic school for
violations that are assigned two or more points (for example, reckless driving).
- You have not taken traffic school in the last 18 months. The time period is measured from violation date to violation date. In other words, the
clock starts ticking from the day you got your last ticket.
- You have paid all fees. You must pay fees and bail to the court in order to be eligible. In addition, you must plead guilty to the infraction.
You cannot take traffic school if you have already been convicted of the violation. This means that you must request traffic school at the time you
plead guilty and submit your fees.
Can I Take Traffic School If I Have a Commercial Driver License?
The court may approve for you to take traffic school if you have a commercial driver license if the offense occurred in a noncommercial vehicle.
After completing traffic school with a commercial driver license, a conviction will appear on your driver record at the DMV, but a point will not appear
for the offence.
How Do I Request Traffic School?
If you received a ticket for a moving violation and the court sends a reminder notice, it will say if you are eligible for traffic school.
You will need to either appear in court to request traffic school at your arraignment hearing or contact your court to let them know that you are
electing to take traffic school. Many courts allow you to request traffic school online, by mail, by phone, or in person at the Clerk’s Office windows.
Visit your court’s website to see what methods they allow for requesting traffic school. If you decide to go to traffic school without going to court,
you must request permission to take traffic school by the due date on your traffic ticket. If the clerk or judge grants permission for you to attend
traffic school, you must complete the course by the deadline they give you. Once you finish the course, the traffic school will notify the DMV and
the court of your completion. It is a good idea to follow up with the court 7 to 10 days after you complete the course to ensure the court has
processed your completion.
Do I Still Need to Pay My Traffic Fine If I Go to Traffic School?
You will still need to pay your traffic fine, as well as an administrative court fee and the traffic school fee. Taking traffic school does not
eliminate your fines or fees, it only keeps points from going on your record, which in turn will keep your insurance from going up.
How Does Traffic School Work?
After you receive permission from your court to take traffic school, you must sign up for an approved course. Safe2Drive’s California Traffic
School course is approved by the California DMV, meaning that this course is accepted by all courts in the state of California and will satisfy
your traffic school requirement. Safe2Drive’s course can be completed entirely online. Once you complete the course, we will automatically
process your completion to the court electronically. You will be able to print a Receipt of Completion for your
records. Once the court has received and reviewed your completion, they will notify the DMV. The DMV will then mask (hide) the points on your
driving record. No one, including insurance companies, will see your ticket.
You can look up your traffic school completion here.
What Else Can I Do Online?
You can request your driver's record online here. In many cases, you will be able to pay your traffic ticket online via your individual court's website. You may also be able to look up your traffic ticket. For more information about how traffic tickets are handled in your county, click on your county's name below to visit its traffic court website.
Ready to register for California Traffic School? Click the orange button below to get started!
Sign Up for CA Traffic School