Pay a California Highway Patrol Ticket Online
There you were, cruising down Interstate 5 on your way home to LA after that visit to Napa, when suddenly—the blue light special! You know the drill: license, registration, proof of insurance. All was ready, including your best excuses and most humble behavior, but Officer Friendly was unmoved. Now you have a ticket to deal with in a county {{safesubst:#invoke:convert|convert}} from home.
Luckily, most of the 58 counties in the CHP's jurisdiction allow you to pay traffic tickets online. This article will tell you how to do that. Read on!
Steps
- Read the citation carefully. It will tell you if you have the option to pay the ticket online, or if you must appear in court.
- Note the county in which you received the citation. A California Highway Patrol ticket is payable only to that county's court.
- Look out for correspondence from the county court by mail. Most counties will send you information about paying or contesting a traffic ticket. You will also be told if traffic school is an option.
- Schedule time. You must wait a few days for your citation number to be entered into the system, so wait at least 2 business days after you got the ticket, and at least 2 business days before it's due.
- Be sure to pay by the due date. Most counties in California will not accept payment online if a traffic ticket is past due.
- Go to the California Pay Traffic Fines page. You will see a list of 58 counties. Click on the one where you were ticketed.
- Each county has a different website, and a different way of handling online payments.
- A few counties, like Kings, for example, do not allow you to pay your traffic ticket online. However, most of these counties provide a number that you can call and pay your citation with a credit card.
- Click the Pay... button. In general, there will be a button that says "Pay a traffic ticket," or "Paying your traffic fine," or similar words.
- Most have links to pay a ticket, request a court date and possibly request traffic school.
- Fill out the online form. Enter your name, address, and driver's license number. Enter your citation number as listed on your ticket.
- Choose the payment method. Most payments must be made by either credit card or electronic funds transfer.
- If you choose to pay with a credit card, enter your credit card number, expiry date, security code, name and billing address, as required.
- If you choose to pay with an electronic funds transfer you will need to enter your bank routing number and account number as well as your name, address and bank. The routing number and account number are listed on the bottom left of most personal checks.
- 'Fess up. Check the box to plead guilty or no contest to the citation. You may also have an option to choose traffic school. Finalize the process using whatever button means "Submit," and look for a confirmation that your citation has been paid.
- A no contest plea means that you will not admit to guilt but you will receive the same punishment as if you plead guilty. A no contest plea is often used to avoid admitting guilt in the case of future lawsuits.
Tips
- Traffic school is an option given to California drivers that are issued infrequent citations. You must pay the fine, but you can avoid it being reported to the driver's license bureau and insurance company if you attend mandatory classes.
- After paying your traffic ticket, you may hear from your driver's license bureau and insurance company. If you have not opted for traffic school, the court will report the traffic ticket. Usually the DMV will add points to your license.
- California courts will report your CHP citation to out of state DMVs and insurance companies. Some states will not choose to list low-grade citations.
- Since every California county has a different website, the process will differ slightly for each. The payment, citation and plea online forms may be in a different order.
Warnings
- Not all traffic tickets can be paid online. Some offenses require you to appear at your court date.
Things You'll Need
- California Highway Patrol citation
- Credit card
- Personal Check
- Driver's license
- Internet connection
