It goes without saying that driving, by far, is one of the most convenient ways to commute. However, the convenience comes with a catch, and that is a lack of sufficient parking space. With more number of vehicles around, the lack of sufficient parking space has now become an ever-increasing urban problem. And because of this, it becomes almost impossible for drivers to steer clear of parking tickets.
Any parking ticket, in itself, is an extra expense. But is it just a mere expense or does it entail more serious issues with it? Read on to know more.
Types of parking violations
There are different parking-related reasons that can cause any driver to get a parking ticket. Double parking is one of the most common parking ticket types. Double parking is when a driver parks parallelly close to another vehicle that’s parked against a curb. Parking at a parking meter for longer than the time allowed or without paying at all is another instance when parking tickets are issued to drivers. Non-functioning or expired parking meters are often the cause of this issue.
One of the most common types of parking tickets that are issued to drivers is for parking at an intersection or close to an intersection. Some of the other different types of parking violations that can cause any driver to be fined with a parking ticket include parking in front of a fire hydrant or on a fire lane, parking in an unauthorized zone, and parking in handicap spots.
Do Parking Tickets Affect Insurance
Many drivers, even some of the experienced ones, do not have a clear understanding of whether or not parking tickets affect their car insurance and even the premium they pay for the insurance. In fact, the question, do parking tickets affect your insurance?, is common to many drivers in the US. To look from a simple perspective, parking tickets do not affect your vehicle insurance, neither do parking tickets increase insurance.
One of the main reasons for parking tickets not affecting your insurance is they do not affect your driving record in any way. In other words, vehicle insurance companies do not have or look for information related to your history of parking tickets. This also means that your history of parking tickets do not come in your way of filing a claim for the insurance.
However, there is one catch. Parking tickets can affect your insurance in the long term if you do not pay them. In fact, not paying or forgetting to pay a parking ticket is the only way how parking tickets affect insurance as well as your driving record.
Consequences of unpaid parking tickets
The biggest penalty for unpaid parking tickets is expiry vehicle registration. Unpaid parking tickets in another state or every other state causes drivers to lose their vehicle registration as it’s a law in every US state for drivers to pay unpaid parking tickets in order to renew their vehicle registration.
And if you are driving around with expired vehicle registration (as a result for unpaid parking tickets) and get caught, the cops can file substantial penalties. The penalties that you get for driving without a renewed vehicle registration affect your driving record which, in turn, increase the likelihood of insurance prices going higher for you.
There are several instances where drivers are willing to oblige for paying parking tickets still have unpaid parking tickets in the driving records. The main reason for this is not being aware of outstanding parking tickets that are yet to be paid for. Fortunately, there are several ways how you can check for unpaid tickets and make sure that your driving record is clean.
One simple way is to visit your local DMW office. You can simply have your driving record checked by providing your driving license. The office authorities will let you know whether or not you have unpaid tickets in your record. Another simple way is to check online. Simply visit www.dmv.org to check for unpaid tickets online.
