Take a defensive driving class, pay tickets promptly, contest questionable tickets, and keep an eye out for errors to help maintain a clean driving record.

Written by Liz Jenson

Edited by Sarah Gray

Updated on May 17, 2024

Jump to:

How to clear your driver record
How to minimize the impact of violations on your record
How to keep your record clean
How your driving record affects insurance costs
FAQ
Meet our experts

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To avoid the higher

car insurance

rates that come with a spotty driving record, pay any tickets promptly, keep an eye out for errors, and follow these other tips and tricks to clean up your motor vehicle record (MVR).

How to clear your driver record

Step 1: Get a copy of your driving record

Get a copy of your driving record or

motor vehicle record (MVR)

by visiting the Department of Motor Vehicles (DMV) in person, mailing in the necessary forms, or checking the DMV website for an online option. Regardless of method, you’ll typically be charged a fee of $1-$15 for this service.1

Step 2: Check your driving record for accuracy

Look for any misreported accidents, tickets, or convictions and compare notes with your own records. While your record will usually be accurate, sometimes you’ll find a discrepancy that’s impacting your insurance rates.

Step 3: Dispute errors immediately

If you do find any errors on your record, it’s important to dispute them right away. Contact your local DMV for more information about the dispute process in your home state.

Learn More:

What is a Clean Driving Record?

How to minimize the impact of violations on your record

Make a bid for expunging or deferring

In some states, you may be able to prevent or remove violation points from your record. This is done via expungement or deferment.

Deferment: In some states, you can pay a fine to keep a ticket off your record, which is called deferment. Deferment is typically dependent upon remaining ticket-free for 12 months following fee payment. If you’re ticketed for any moving violations within the 12-month period, you forfeit your fee and the deferred ticket is added to your record.

Expungement: In some cases, you may be able to get a serious offense (such as a

DUI

or reckless driving charge) removed from your record after receiving no serious violations for a specified period of time. Expungement is usually an option after three to five years, but laws around this differ from state to state.

To make your bid for a deferment or expungement, you’ll need to go to court and petition the judge.

Take care of “fix-it” tickets immediately

“Fix-it” tickets are citations for things that require corrective action—like a broken taillight. Often, once the corrective action is taken, you can present proof to the DMV or court to have the citation dismissed—especially if it’s a first offense.

Common “fix-it” tickets include:

Driver’s license violations (like forgetting your license at home)

Insurance violations (like misplacing your insurance card)*

Equipment violations (like driving with a broken taillight)

Car registration violations (like driving with an expired registration)

Driving without insurance

is not the same thing as driving without

proof of insurance

. To have a chance of getting an insurance violation dismissed, you must be able to prove you had valid insurance at the time you were cited—purchasing coverage after the fact will not be enough.

How to keep your record clean

It takes more than good driving habits and avoiding moving violations to maintain a clean record, though these things help. Here are a few tips and tricks for keeping your record clean over time.

Take a defensive driving course

Traffic school isn’t just for people with minor violations on their record. Not only can a

defensive driving course

teach you about being a safe driver and help you avoid at-fault accidents but, in several states, you can take a defensive driving class to remove points from your record.

Some drivers can also save as much as 15% on their insurance premiums for taking a defensive driving course. While not all states offer this discount option, in some states (like

California

), insurance companies are required to offer discounted premiums for drivers who pass an approved defensive driving course, provided that the class wasn’t court-mandated.2

To better illustrate how a defensive driving course can benefit you, here are the average discounts* offered to drivers before and after attending an approved defensive driving course.

Discount	State
Up to 5%	CA , IL , NJ , WI
Up to 10%	AK, AZ , CT , FL , GA , ID , IN , KS , KY , ME , MD , MS , MO , MT , NE , NV , NH , NY , ND , RI , SC , SD , TN , TX , VA , WA , WV , WY
Up to 12%	MN
Up to 15%	AR , DE
Not specified	AL , CO , DC, HI, IA , LA , NM , OH , OK , OR , PA , UT

* May vary by municipality

Need to know: Some states only allow insurers to offer defensive driving discounts to drivers in certain age groups, like teens or seniors.

Contest any questionable tickets

If you feel that you’ve been wrongly cited for an infraction, it’s best to argue your case in traffic court before it’s put on your driver’s record. It’s much easier to get a violation dismissed before it’s been put on your record than it is to get points removed later. This also applies to non-moving violations, like parking tickets.

Use telematics

Enrolling in a

telematics program

can help you understand your driving habits and hone your skills accordingly. A telematics app or device will track your driving habits for you and send a report to you and your insurance company—which could lead to a good driver discount.

You can also use

Jerry’s DriveShield

to track your driving habits straight from your phone. DriveShield uses telematics technology to track things like speeding, phone use, and harsh braking and help you avoid future moving violations and earn perks while you’re at it.

DriveShield won’t get you a direct discount on your insurance, but the safe driving behaviors it promotes have helped Jerry users qualify for an average 12%

good driver discount

from their insurance provider.

Want to improve your defensive driving skills?

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How your driving record affects insurance costs

Every insurance company checks your driving record before offering or renewing a policy. What’s on that record will have a huge impact on your car insurance rates, particularly if you have several moving violations and/or

at-fault accidents

on your record.

Different violations will have a different impact on your rates. Common violations like speeding tickets can increase your premiums for as long as they’re on your record, sometimes up to seven years. With more serious violations (like DUIs/DWIs) insurance rate increases could last even longer.

To help you understand the impact your driving record can have, here are the average rate increases seen by drivers after a single speeding ticket, DUI, or at-fault accident.

Provider	% Increase after speeding ticket	% Increase after DUI	% Increase after at-fault accident
Allstate	15%	101%	13%
USAA	17%	97%	44%
Nationwide	26%	123%	18%
State Farm	26%	74%	59%
Farmers	31%	120%	37%
Travelers	37%	74%	5%
GEICO	38%	164%	26%
Progressive	43%	42%	19%

FAQ

Can you lose your driving privileges for a bad driving record?

It is possible to lose your driving privileges if you have too many violations on your record. If your state uses a

points system

, you can also lose your license for racking up too many points in a specified period of time. For more information about your license and your driving record, check your state’s traffic laws.

What type of violation can cause license suspension?

While most types of moving violations won’t cost you your license, you may be faced with license suspension even after just one hit-and-run,

DUI/DWI

, reckless homicide, or reckless driving charge.

Can you still get a good driver discount with a bad driving record?

Unfortunately, good driver discounts are reserved for people with no

at-fault accidents

or moving violations on their record. However, you may qualify for other performance-based driving discounts, such as a

telematics

discount. Telematics technology tracks your driving habits and, if you’re a safe and careful driver, can result in an insurance discount based on your driving behavior.

Meet our experts

Liz Jenson

Liz Jenson is an insurance writer who specializes in general automotive and insurance topics. Liz’s mission is to produce informative and useful content to help car owners make smart choices when buying cars and car insurance. Since joining Jerry in 2021, Liz has written nearly 4,000 long- and short-form articles on topics including state-specific insurance recommendations, common car insurance questions, and deep dives into vehicle model details.

Before they came to Jerry, Liz was a full-time student at Indiana University, Bloomington working on a double major in English and French.

Sarah Gray

Licensed Insurance Agent — Expert Insurance Writer and Editor

Sarah Gray is an insurance writer with nearly a decade of experience in publishing and writing. Sarah specializes in writing articles that educate car owners and buyers on the full scope of car ownership—from shopping for and buying a new car to scrapping one that’s breathed its last and everything in between. Sarah has authored over 1,500 articles for Jerry on topics ranging from first-time buyer programs to how to get a salvage title for a totaled car.

Prior to joining Jerry, Sarah was a full-time professor of English literature and composition with multiple academic writing publications.

SOURCES

https://www.mvronline.com/mvr-fees/

https://www.bestonlinetrafficschool.co/california-good-driver-discount/