Professional Traffic Ticket Representation:

Question: What are the consequences in Ontario if I’m convicted of a major driving offence, and how can a paralegal help me reduce the impact on my insurance and demerit points?

Answer: If you’re convicted of a major driving offence in Ontario, you can face higher fines and court surcharges, more demerit points, and potentially licence suspension, and your insurance premiums can rise significantly for at least three years, especially if you have prior convictions or other charges that the Crown ties to your driving history.   Freed Legal Services helps drivers in Ontario review the charge, analyze your case-specific facts and defence options, challenge evidence and witness testimony where appropriate, and guide you through the paperwork and traffic court process so you can pursue the best possible outcome, including charge reduction, dismissal, or minimizing insurance and demerit impact with a strategic defence approach.   If you want to protect your driving record and reduce long-term consequences, call (800) 716-1897 for a quick consult.

Providing Strategic Defence Advocacy

Major charges, whether individually or when combined with other minor or other major offences, can lead to significantly higher insurance premiums. When paired with other charges or past convictions, there is also the risk of licence suspension due to an accumulation of demerit points, along with hefty fines. A thorough professional assessment of the potential consequences, the relevant facts and the applicable defence theories, is essential when dealing with a major driving offence charge.

Protecting Against Significant Consequences

Upon conviction for a serious traffic offence, a driver is usually hit with substantial fines and surcharges, and the driver can also expect insurance rates to rise considerably for the following three years. A poor prior driving record may also lead to a potential licence suspension or additional penalties.

Factors Tending to Aggravate Penalties

The affects of conviction for a major driving offence can be significantly further aggravated:

• When a driver was previously convicted within the past three years on another charge;
• When a driver is on the cusp of having accumulated too many demerit points and this latest major charge now puts the driver at risk of a licence suspension, among other penalties; and
• When a driver is required to maintain a good driving record as a condition of employment.

Conclusion

Traffic tickets of the major charges type pose serious consequences involving substantial fines plus victim surcharges as well as demerit points that may be the straw that breaks the camel's back resulting in a license suspension.  Additionally, a major charge may result in substantially increased insurance rates including the potential for loss of access to standard insurance market and substitute placement into the highly priced Facility Association.

Accordingly, when charged with a major traffic ticket offence, hiring a professional who knows how to question witnesses, especially which questions to ask and which questions to avoid, and who knows the law, knows the paperwork processes and courtroom procedures, and knows how to make judicially persuasive arguments on the applicable legal principles, is highly important.