Wait Before You Pay Off Warrants In Irving Municipal Court
Irving Municipal Court
Irving Ticket Attorney
Fine Payments And Convictions
1-214-321-4105
It is warrant roundup season again in Irving, Texas and surrounding cities. The goal of this article is to catch those who intend to simply pay off their traffic tickets to get rid of the warrant. As discussed below, paying off old tickets that have gone into warrant status is a huge mistake that must be avoided in order to protect your driving record, insurance rates and driver’s license. If you would like to discuss your warrants or unpaid tickets in Irving Municipal Court with an experienced ticket attorney, call our legal professionals today.
Convictions For Paying Fines In Irving
Paying off old tickets is the biggest problem we deal with on a daily basis for those who have suspended licenses. Many people are simply uneducated on how traffic tickets are monitored. They get a warrant notice in the mail from the city that has active warrants out for their arrest and they panic. In response, they run down to Irving Municipal Court to pay off the warrants.
However, what is not explained to them is that fine payments is equal to being found guilty at trial. Guilty means Irving Municipal Court must then report that guilt as a conviction to Texas DPS. Texas DPS has some pretty nasty enforcement actions they can take against drivers with too many convictions or a conviction for the wrong offense. For example, some of the punishments that can be handed down are as follows:
- A driver license will automatically be suspended if an individual is convicted of:
- Four or more moving traffic violations within a 12-month period, or
- Seven or more moving traffic violations within a 24-month period.
Individuals who have been convicted of at least two offenses for a violation that conflicts with a restriction or endorsement printed on their driver license are also subject to a suspension or disqualification.
Individuals who receive a conviction for one of the offenses listed in the chart below will pay an annual surcharge for three years from the date of conviction. Points are not assessed for these offenses because the surcharge is automatic upon conviction.
Convictions are added to the driver record once DPS receives notification from the court. As a result, there may be a delay between the date of the actual conviction and when the conviction is added to a driver record.
| Type of Conviction | Surcharge* |
|---|---|
| 1st Driving While Intoxicated (DWI) Texas or out-of state conviction for DWI, Intoxication Assault or Manslaughter |
$1,000 |
| Subsequent DWI Texas or out-of state conviction for DWI, Intoxication Assault or Manslaughter |
$1,500 |
| DWI with Blood Alcohol Concentration of 0.16 or More Texas or out-of state conviction |
$2,000 |
| No Insurance | $250 |
| Driving While License Invalid (DWLI) Driver license is canceled, suspended, denied or revoked |
$250 |
| No Driver License No driver license or commercial driver license, an expired license or endorsement violation(s) |
$100 |
| *The surcharge amount is assessed every year for three years. | |
Irving Traffic Attorney
As one can see, the payment of a fine can result in substantially more money being owed to another government agency. Yes, you may be successful in getting the warrant lifted, but now the problem is even worse due to the civil penalties assessed. The key is to get good advice before you go and make a mistake that is not easily undone. For a consultation regarding your unpaid tickets in Irving, feel free to contact us
