A parking ticket usually does not appear on your driving record. However, leaving tickets unpaid can have negative consequences, including the potential suspension of your driver’s license. And while insurers don’t usually factor non-moving violations into their calculation of your car insurance policy premium, unpaid tickets can indirectly negatively affect what you pay for insurance.
A parking ticket doesn’t stay on your permanent driving record
Maybe you didn’t look around carefully enough and missed that “No Parking Zone” sign. Perhaps you knew you parked illegally but hoped you could dash in and out of a store without your car being noticed. Or maybe you just lost track of time and let a parking meter expire. Whatever the circumstances, coming out to your car and finding that little slip of paper under your windshield wiper can ruin an otherwise great day.
The good news is parking tickets typically don’t appear on your permanent driving record. And provided you pay them on time, tickets shouldn’t have any longer-term repercussions. On the other hand, ignoring your parking tickets can lead to some very negative consequences.
Consequences of unpaid parking tickets
You might be tempted to ignore your parking tickets and skip out on the fines. But what starts as just owing your town a fine of maybe $50 or $60 could lead to much more severe consequences. Failure to pay parking ticket fines could result in additional fines, suspension of your driver’s license, arrest, and jail time. In some municipalities, your car could be impounded or immobilized with a boot.
There’s been recent interest among New Jersey lawmakers to end the practice of license suspension as a penalty for unpaid parking tickets. In 2022, the Assembly passed bill A1376 to address this, though the bill does not appear to have been brought to a vote in the Senate. Meanwhile, the city of East Orange, New Jersey, took matters into its own hands when it recently announced it was waiving fines on tickets issued from 2017 to 2021.
So, while support for forgiveness of parking ticket fines and other consequences may be growing, paying your tickets on time is still the best way to avoid trouble down the road.
Can a parking ticket lead to your car insurance increase?
According to insurer Progressive, a parking ticket typically will not lead to a car insurance premium increase. Insurers use your driving record (technically called your “motor vehicle report”) to gather information to calculate your premium. Because most states do not list parking tickets on driving records, insurance companies have no way to see them.
There are, however, some indirect ways a parking ticket could affect your insurance costs.
Credit history
An unpaid ticket sent to a collection agency could negatively affect your credit history, which most insurers look at when calculating a policy’s premium. People with poor credit histories tend to pay more for car insurance.
Suspended license
Having a suspended license could make it much more difficult to get car insurance and could cause your premium to increase.
A ticket is annoying, but it won’t stay on your driving record
A parking ticket can be a real annoyance. But the good news is that they typically don’t appear on your permanent driving record. And provided you pay the fine on time, a ticket shouldn’t have any long-term consequences for your driver’s license status or what you pay for car insurance.
Frequently asked questions (FAQs)
How many parking tickets can you get before there are negative consequences with your driving record?
Parking ticket laws vary by municipality. But typically, as long as you pay your tickets in full and on time, there should be no negative consequences, no matter how many tickets you get.
How much does a parking ticket cost?
The latest available data from 2022 shows that the average cost of a parking ticket varies widely across the U.S. The lowest cost was Austin, Texas at $35 and the highest were Minneapolis and Portland at $80.
