It’s so easy to lose your cool and start panicking when you see the police lights in your rearview. Add on another level of anxiety when you hear the sirens. You start to sweat, your palms get clammy, and you wonder if you were really going that fast. When caught speeding, it’s important to remember to remain calm, call Ticket Snipers, and follow our tips below.
- Cooperate!
The first thing you should tell yourself to do is to cooperate with the officer. Do not try to contest your ticket or your driving habits just yet. Being disrespectful and talking back is a cheap one-way ticket into the slammer for the night (if serious).
Do yourself a favor and give the officer every reason and opportunity to treat you fairly. You may even be lucky enough to be let off with a verbal warning and no ticket at all!
Be friendly, there is nothing wrong with a “hello, how are you?”, don’t admit to or deny the speeding, and ask the officer before you take any action such as reaching for your wallet.
When you see those daunting sirens in your rearview, pull over at the first opportunity and provide all the documents and information the officer asks for. At the end, there is also no harm in asking if the officer would consider letting you off with a warning. If the answer is no, don’t push it.
- Double Check Everything
Inspect your ticket to make sure all is in order. What are you being cited for and is your information correct? Look over the ticket and make sure everything is right, including the fine. Then decide if you have a reasonable point of argument if something seems off.
- Pay or Don’t Pay the Fine…that is the question.
If everything seems to check out, then pay the fine at your earliest convenience. Paying a ticket is the equivalent of pleading guilty to the charges, and you will have to deal with whatever consequences follow.
If you want to contend your ticket, make sure you talk to a lawyer first. Get in touch with one with a specialty in traffic law and decide the next best move. You can either fight the ticket or try some techniques on how to get a speeding ticket reduced.
- Reasons or Excuses
Excuses don’t really seem like the mature and grown-up way to handle a situation, but sometimes there is a legitimate reason. The following are some examples what you can say for the officer to be a little sympathetic and lenient.
- I really have to use the bathroom.
- You sped to avoid something dangerous on the road or an accident.
- You thought you needed to move out of the way of the officer when you saw the lights flashing.
- You were following the speeds of other cars.
- You have a medical emergency.
Some of these excuses are long-shots and we’re sure you have seen plenty of them used in movies – and they don’t always work! The same goes for you.
In the end, if you tried to be polite, gave your legitimate reasons, and asked for a warning but you still got the ticket, then we’d suggest taking it and contesting it in court.
Conclusion
While speeding is almost never okay, sometimes you had no other choice. Just keep calm, make sure you are heard by the officer and cooperate to the best of your abilities and you’ll be just fine.
