THE QUESTION
“I received a traffic ticket in Charlotte, Mecklenburg County. I live in another state. Is the North Carolina ticket going to affect my insurance?”
THE ANSWER
As Charlotte has grown over the years the number of non-residents passing through has increased. Along with that increase has come an increase in non-residents receiving Charlotte traffic violations. The answer to the question is dependent upon the laws of the individual’s home state which can be determined by examining the Nonresident Violator Compact in conjunction with the Department of Motor Vehicles rules in an individual’s home state.
The Nonresident Violator Compact, which has been adopted by almost all the 50 states, allows the home state to suspend the driver’s license of an individual who fails to comply with a member state citation. A list of member states can be found at: Nonresident Violator Compact.
As an additional concern many North Carolina speeding violations (especially those in excess of 15 mph over the speed limit) can result in the suspension of your NC driver’s privilege. Non-residents face the risk that their privilege to drive could be suspended in North Carolina and potentially suspended in their home state. Further, if an individual fails to handle her ticket, the most likely outcome will be that a hold will be placed by the North Carolina DMV. The individual will be unable to renew or transfer their license until the North Carolina traffic violation is cleared up. While your Department of Motor Vehicles probably will become aware of the citation in North Carolina, the question of how the citation will affect your insurance generally depends on your local DMV.
