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Last updated: September 19, 2024

How a Speeding Ticket Impacts Car Insurance in Florida

Speeding in Florida is a noncriminal traffic infraction, but it could raise insurance costs regardless.

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In Florida, speeding is a noncriminal traffic infraction, meaning it’s punishable by fines and not imprisonment. And while there is a way to get some speeding violations off your driving record, if you were convicted of going 30 miles per hour (mph) or more over the posted limit, you could see your insurance premium skyrocket. But by how much, exactly, and what are the other penalties for speeding?

TIP:

Read our guide on how to find the best auto insurance options for drivers with a speeding ticket, cheapest car insurance plans for DUI drivers, and more.

How a Speeding Ticket Impacts Your Insurance

On average, expect your premium for car insurance in Florida to increase by 19 percent after a speeding ticket.

Average annual cost of car insurance in Florida Clean record Speeding ticket Percentage increase
Overall $2,938 $3,501 19%
Allstate $3,137 $3,788 21%
GEICO $1,471 $3,136 113%
Progressive $3,251 $4,491 38%
State Farm $1,620 $2,442 51%
Travelers $952 $2,711 185%

Aside from how a speeding ticket affects car insurance, car insurance premiums will differ based on many demographic factors, like your ZIP code and even your credit score. To illustrate, people with bad credit pay more for car insurance than those with good credit. Learn more about what affects car insurance rates before you request an insurance quote from a Florida company.

How to Lower Your Premium After a Speeding Ticket

Were you caught speeding and received a speeding ticket? You’re probably wondering how to get the lowest auto insurance premium from one of the cheapest car insurance companies.

Fortunately, there is an easy way to avoid an increase in the cost of Florida car insurance if you were going less than 30 mph over the limit. Even if you were going 30 mph or more over, there are still ways to save.

  1. Take a Basic Driver Improvement (BDI) course. For all speeding violations of under 30 mph over the limit, you can take a BDI course, and Florida Highway Safety and Motor Vehicles will not add points to your driving record. This means that Florida car insurance companies can’t raise your rates, cancel your policy midterm, or not renew your policy at the end of its term. See a list of approved driving schools below.1
Name of approved Basic Driver Improvement (BDI) course Method of delivery Website Phone number
$15 Florida BDI (Miami/Dade County Only) Internet http://www.15dollarfloridabdi.com/ 844-812-8512
$5 Florida Approved Courses (Orange and Osceola County citations only) Internet https://www.5dollartrafficschool.com/Florida/BDI-Course/home.php 800-934-6285
1SafeDriver.com Classroom, internet http://www.1safedriver.com/ 888-750-6400
Aceable

(Miami Dade county citations only)

Internet https://www.aceable.com/driver-improvement/florida/ 512-522-4174
American Safety Council Classroom, internet, DVD https://www.floridaonlinetrafficschool.com/ 800-393-1063
American Safety Institute, Inc. Classroom, internet, DVD https://americansafetyinstitute.com/4-hour-basic-driver-improvement/%22 800-800-7121
Best Price Traffic School Classroom, internet http://www.bestpricetrafficschool.com/florida-defensive-driving-course.html 888-810-0119
Cheap-Easy-Fast-Florida-Traffic School (Miami-Dade County citations only Internet https://www.cheapeasyfastfl.com/home 800-571-3168
Comedy Defensive Driving Classroom, internet http://www.comedydefensivedriving.com/florida-traffic-school/ 866-540-0584
Comedy Driving Traffic School Classroom, internet http://www.comedydrivingtrafficschool.com/ 866-357-2020
Comedy Safe Driver (Broward County citations only) Internet https://comedysafedriver.com/florida-online-traffic-school.html 888-822-3340
CyberActive

(Miami-Dade citations only)

Internet https://www.gototrafficschool.com/florida 888-749-4445
Defensive Drivers Discount

(Broward County citations only)

Classroom http://www.defensivedriversdiscount.com/ 877-697-2331, ext. 1
Driver Training Associates, Inc Classroom, internet

(additional languages available)

http://www.ticketschool.com/florida 800-222-9199
DriverEducators.com LLC Internet https://gobdic.com/FL 888-237-5669
DriveSafe Inc. Internet https://drivesafe.us/florida/bdi.html 888-497-4499
DriveSafeToday.com, Inc. Internet https://www.drivesafetoday.com/courses/florida/basic-driver-improvement-course 800-991-0310
Dummies Traffic School.com Internet http://www.dummiestrafficschool.com/ 877-382-3700
Easy Online Traffic School (Palm Beach County citations only) Internet https://www.cheaperfastereasierfl.com/ 888-711-6974
Florida Educational Driving School Classroom, internet http://www.fedsafe.com/ 888-497-1755
Florida Fun Traffic School Classroom, internet, DVD, booklet http://www.floridafuntrafficschool.com/ 866-455-8054
Florida Safety Council Classroom, internet http://www.floridasafety.org/ 800-372-3335
Funny Driving LLC

(Orange and Osceola County citations only)

Internet https://www.funnydriving.com/florida 866-357-2020
Funny in Florida (traffic safety consultants) Classroom, internet, DVD, booklet

(additional languages available)

http://www.funnyinflorida.com/ 800-998-8533
Gold Traffic School Internet http://www.goldtrafficschool.com/ 786-673-8844
Highway Traffic School Internet https://www.highwaytrafficschool.com/Florida/Basic-Driver-Improvement-Traffic-School.aspx 888-406-1726
I Drive Safely Internet, classroom https://www.idrivesafely.com/traffic-school/florida/ 800-723-1955
Lowest Price Traffic School Classroom, internet http://www.lowestpricetrafficschool.com/ 800-729-1495
Metro Traffic School Classroom http://www.metrotrafficschool.com/ 800-901-3687
Miscrianti

(Miami-Dade County citations only)

Internet https://miscrianti.com/ 415-800-1906
National Highway Safety Administration Internet (additional languages available) https://nationalhighwaysafetyadministration.com/en/florida-basic-driver-improvement-course 800-829-3727
National Safety Council Internet https://www.drivesafe.com/florida-online-defensive-driving-course/ 800-432-5251
National Traffic Safety Institute Classroom, internet

(additional languages available)

https://ntsi.com/florida/bdi/ 888-497-4499
NexLearn (Orange and Osceola County citations only) Internet https://www.drivesafeonline.org/florida/basic-driver-improvement/ 877-265-2170
NiSE (Hillsborough County citations only) Internet https://www.flhsmv.gov/bdi.nise.co 904-297-5964
Online Traffic Education Internet http://www.onlinetrafficeducation.com/Florida.php 888-308-9005
Safe2Drive Internet https://www.safe2drive.com/florida-traffic-school.aspx 800-763-1297
Too Cool Traffic School Internet (additional languages available) https://www.toocooltrafficschool.com/florida/bdi 844-602-1555
Traffic School by The Improv Comedy Club Internet (additional languages available) http://www.myimprov.com/traffic-school/Florida 800-660-8908
Traffic School Online.com Internet http://www.trafficschoolonline.com/florida-traffic-school 800-800-3579
U-Drive Safe Classroom http://www.udrivesafeflorida.com/ 850-716-3081
Wise Traffic School Internet http://www.wisetrafficschool.com/ 877-885-8843
  1. Get minimum coverage. The cheapest car insurance in Florida is minimum coverage: $10,000 worth of personal injury protection (PIP) per person and per accident and the same amount in property damage coverage.
  2. Ask for discounts. The best way to get cheap car insurance in Florida is to ask your agent which discounts apply to you. For example, you may be able to get a discount for being a loyal customer, staying accident-free for a certain amount of time, or enrolling in usage-based insurance, to name a few.

Cost of Speeding Ticket in Florida

In Florida, speeding is a noncriminal traffic infraction that’s punished as a moving violation. However, fines will be doubled if the speeding occurred in a school or construction zone, or $50 more if it occurred in an enhanced penalty zone.

Fine by mph over the speed limit Regular zone School zone Construction zone Enhanced penalty zone Zone posted for electronic/manual toll collection facility
1-5 Warning only $50 $50 $50 $50
6-9 $25 $50 $100 $75 $150
10-14 $100 $200 $400 $150 $300
15-19 $150 $300 $600 $200 $400
20-29 $175 $350 $700 $225 $450
30 or higher, 1st conviction $250 $500 $1,000 $300 $600
30 or higher, 2nd or subsequent convictions within a 12-month period $500 $1,000 $1,000 $550 $1,000

Enhanced penalty zones are portions of the highway that have a high incidence of speeding-related crashes.

WARNING:

Speeding in “special event zones,” specific areas designated by warning signs like school or construction zones, could also include vehicle impoundment for a maximum of 72 hours.2

You could face additional penalties if you were speeding and caused a crash that involved:

  • Injury or property damage to a pedestrian: Additional $250 fine, required attendance at a driver improvement school, or both
  • Serious bodily injury: Additional $500 civil penalty and three-month license suspension
  • Death: Additional $1,000 civil penalty and six-month license suspension

Hearings are mandatory for crashes involving death and/or serious bodily injury. The Florida Statutes define “serious bodily injury” as an injury to a person consistent of a physical condition that creates a substantial risk of:

  • Death
  • Serious personal disfigurement
  • Protected loss or impairment of the function of a bodily organ or member

In addition to fines, license suspensions, and required attendance at driving school, you will also get points on your driving record:

  • Speeding 15 mph or less over the limit: Three points
  • Speeding more than 15 mph over the limit: Four points
  • Unlawful speed resulting in a crash: Six points

If you get a certain number of points within a given time period, the state will suspend your driving privileges:

  • 12 points within one year: 30-day suspension
  • 18 points within 18 months: Three-month suspension
  • 24 points within three years: One-year suspension

What to Do If You Get a Speeding Ticket

So, you were fined for speeding on Florida roads. Here are your three options.

Pay the Fine

You can pay the fine in one of two ways:

Paying the ticket means that you were convicted of speeding and will face the related penalties.

Contest the Citation

Go to your county clerk’s office if you wish to contest the ticket and request a hearing. But note that if you’re found guilty, you will still face the same penalties, which could include completion of a driver improvement course.

Take a Driver Improvement Course

To reduce your citation fees by 18 percent and avoid additional points on your record, take a driver improvement course within 30 days of your citation. Once you’ve completed the course, submit a certificate of completion to your county clerk and pay your reduced citation fee and court costs.

FYI:

You can take a driver improvement course up to five times in your life, but only once per year.

Other Traffic Violations That Affect Car Insurance

Speeding isn’t the only traffic violation that could hike your car insurance premium. Avoid the following traffic violations to keep insurance affordable and your driving record clean:

  • Careless driving
  • Failure to obey traffic control device
  • Failure to stop at a red signal
  • Failure to yield
  • Improper backing
  • Leaving the scene of an accident that had more than $50 in damages without exchanging information, also known as a hit-and-run
  • Failing to leave information after hitting an unattended vehicle and causing property damage
  • Passing on the right when a bus is stopped
  • Reckless driving

Recap

For more information on speeding in Florida, like how long a speeding ticket stays on your record, keep reading our frequently asked questions. While speeding will never result in imprisonment in Florida, it might result in a license suspension, financial penalties, and an increased car insurance premium.

Frequently Asked Questions

How long does a speeding ticket affect insurance in Florida?

If you complete a Basic Driver Improvement course, your speeding ticket will not affect your insurance in Florida. However, this option is available only if you were driving less than 30 miles per hour over the posted limit. For those who went 30 miles per hour or more over the limit, the ticket will remain on your driving record indefinitely, but it’s up to an insurance company how long it wants to charge you more.

Is it worth fighting a speeding ticket in Florida?

Given that speeding tickets in Florida are noncriminal traffic violations not punishable by imprisonment, it is probably not worth fighting a speeding ticket in Florida. The maximum fine is $1,000, given you didn’t cause serious injury or death, and a traffic attorney could cost more than that.

How do I get a speeding ticket dismissed in Florida?

  1. Go to your county clerk’s office.
  2. Request a hearing.
  3. Prove that you were not speeding. This may require hiring an attorney.

How do I clear my driving record in Florida?

You can avoid having points added to your driving record up to five times, but only once per year, by completing a Basic Driver Improvement course approved by Florida Highway Safety and Motor Vehicles. However, not all violations are eligible for this point reduction. For example, you can’t take the course if you were driving 30 miles per hour or more over the posted limit. Additionally, it doesn’t apply to those with a commercial driver’s license.

Aliza Vigderman
Written by:Aliza Vigderman
Senior Writer & Editor
A seasoned journalist and content strategist with over 10 years of editorial experience in digital media, Aliza Vigderman has written and edited hundreds of articles on the site, covering everything from plan coverages to discounts to state laws. Previously, she was a senior editor and industry analyst at the home and digital security website Security.org, previously called Security Baron. She has also contributed to The Huffington Post, SquareFoot, and Degreed. Aliza studied journalism at Brandeis University.

Citations

  1. What is Basic Driver Improvement (BDI) and how do I find the approved listing of BDI course providers? Florida Highway Safety and Motor Vehicles. (2023).
    https://www.flhsmv.gov/driver-licenses-id-cards/education-courses/driver-improvement-schools/basic-driver-improvement-bdi-find-approved-listing-bdi-course-providers/

  2. TITLE XXIII MOTOR VEHICLES CHAPTER 316 STATE UNIFORM TRAFFIC CONTROL. Florida Legislature. (2023).
    http://www.leg.state.fl.us/statutes/index.cfm?App_mode=Display_Statute&URL=0300-0399/0316/0316.html