, your driving record is a public document containing a detailed history of your time on the road—including past traffic violations, at-fault accidents, and out-of-state driving histories.

An official copy of your MA driving record costs $20 while an unofficial copy costs $8.
Your driving record is located in MA if you hold a MA driver’s license.
Car insurance
rates are directly tied to your driving record in
Massachusetts
.
Points stay on your record for six years, but you may be able to improve your rates with a defensive driving course.

Get your official driving record in MA through the Massachusetts Registry of Motor Vehicles

Get your MA record online: The most efficient way to get either a true and attested driving record copy, or unattested driving record copy, is

online

through the RMV (the state DMV government agency). To make an online request, you’ll need to provide the following:

Driver’s license/learner’s permit number

Name

Date of birth

Driver's Social Security number (SSN)

Requestor information (if request a record on someone else’s behalf)

Email address

Fee

Get your MA record by mail: You can also get a copy of your Massachusetts driving record by mail, which will require two weeks for processing before it’s sent to you:

Complete the

Public Driving Record Request Form

Mail the form with applicable fee in check or money order to:

Registry of Motor Vehicles

Court Records Department

P.O. Box 55896

Boston, MA 02205

For MA drivers with incidents out-of-state: Your

motor vehicle report

resides in the state where you currently hold a driver’s license.

If you carry a Massachusetts driver’s license, your driver record resides in the Commonwealth—even if you moved from another state or committed a moving violation in another state. While MA is not a party to the Driver’s License Compact (DLC), an agreement that facilitates the sharing of information between states regarding traffic violations, it can still send and receive driving violation information from other states.

Get an unofficial copy of your driving record from an agent or a vendor

Car insurance agents

Auto insurance agents will check your driving record as part of the vetting process when you apply for a policy, and again whenever your policy is

up for renewal

. You can ask the insurance company for a copy of your record but this copy is not considered official.

Online third-party vendors

A copy from an online vendor will likely cost more than requesting a copy of your driving record from the Registry of Motor Vehicles. Plus, a copy of your driving record from a third party may not be as accurate as one from the RMV.

Requesting a Massachusetts driving record for someone else

To request a Massachusetts driving record on someone else’s behalf, you must certify that you are legally allowed to view another person’s record. Eligibility requirements and identification needed can be found

on the Massachusetts RMV website

You’ll be required to:

Complete the

request form

Obtain permission from the person and get a notarized signature

Get a subpoena, if a federal, state, or local agency is making the request

What is on your driving record?

Your driving record or motor vehicle report is a public record of your history as a driver in the state. Starting from when you first got your driver’s license, this record includes information regarding:

Your full name and address

Date of birth

Massachusetts driver’s license number

At-fault accidents

Traffic tickets like

citations

convictions

Out-of-state driving records (if applicable)

Your license status may show up on background checks.

MORE:

How much does your insurance go up after an accident?

Types of driving records

There are two types of driving records in Massachusetts:

Unattested public driving record ($8): This type of record is for personal or informational purposes only.

True and attested public driving record ($20): This record is for official and/or court purposes and will carry the signature of the Registrar of Motor Vehicles.

Your driving record can affect your insurance rates

In Massachusetts, the state government dictates insurance rates so your insurance payment is directly tied to your driving record.

Violation points can affect your rates

under the Massachusetts points system, the SDIP (Safe Driver Insurance Plan). The worse your MA driving record is, insurers will likely deem you

high risk

and your premiums will be far higher than for a driver with a

clean driving record

Here’s how it works: You accrue points in Massachusetts for surchargeable offenses, and with too many offenses within a defined period of time—including out-of-state incidents—you could have your

license suspended

by the RMV. Points (and license suspensions) are red flags to insurers.

Your RMV record affects more than just your insurance rates. It could limit your driving privileges, suppress your job prospects for organizations that require a clean record (like the police and fire department), and negatively impact your

credit score

if you don’t pay your tickets on time.

MORE:

SR-22 in Massachusetts: what you need to know