Colorado treats traffic infractions as civil offenses rather than crimes, sorting them into two classes with penalties that start at a $15 base fine and climb past $200 for higher-speed violations once surcharges are added. Moving violations also add points to your driving record, and enough points in a rolling window will suspend your license. What you actually pay, and whether your license is at risk, depends on which class of infraction you committed, where it happened, and how old you are.
Class A and Class B Infractions
Class A infractions are moving violations: speeding, running a red light, failing to yield, improper lane changes, following too closely. Class B covers the rest: expired registration, broken taillights, improper parking, equipment problems.
The split matters for two reasons. Points only attach to Class A infractions; the state has no authority to add points for a Class B violation.1Justia. Colorado Code 42-4-1701 – Traffic Offenses and Infractions Classified – Penalties – Penalty and Surcharge Schedule And while both classes share a $15 to $100 base range on paper, the statutory penalty schedule sets higher specific amounts for many individual Class A offenses.
What Common Tickets Actually Cost
The number printed on your citation is the base penalty. On top of that sits a mandatory surcharge, also set by statute. Together they make up the amount you owe.
- Speeding 1–4 mph over: $30 + $6 surcharge = $36
- Speeding 5–9 mph over: $70 + $10 = $80
- Speeding 10–19 mph over: $135 + $16 = $151
- Speeding 20–24 mph over: $200 + $32 = $232
- Running a red light: $100 + $10 = $110
- Most right-of-way violations: $70 + $10 = $80
- Equipment violations: $15–$75 base plus $6–$24 surcharge
- Expired registration: $50 + $16 = $66
If your specific violation isn’t listed in the schedule, the default is a $15 penalty with a $4 surcharge.1Justia. Colorado Code 42-4-1701 – Traffic Offenses and Infractions Classified – Penalties – Penalty and Surcharge Schedule
Doubled Fines in School and Construction Zones
Commit a moving violation in a posted school zone, and both the penalty and the surcharge double. That $151 ticket for going 10 to 19 mph over becomes $302. The same doubling applies in highway maintenance, repair, and construction zones. The doubling only happens once, though. If a school zone overlaps a construction zone, you still pay the doubled amount, not quadruple.1Justia. Colorado Code 42-4-1701 – Traffic Offenses and Infractions Classified – Penalties – Penalty and Surcharge Schedule
Points for Moving Violations
The Colorado Department of Revenue posts a point value to your record for every moving violation conviction. The values jump sharply as the offense gets worse.
- Speeding 1–4 mph over: 0 points
- Speeding 5–9 mph over: 1 point
- Speeding 10–19 mph over: 4 points
- Speeding 20–39 mph over: 6 points
- Speeding 40+ mph over: 12 points
- Careless driving: 4 points
- Reckless driving: 8 points
- Running a red light or stop sign: 4 points
- Failure to stop for a school bus: 6 points
The 12-point value for speeding 40 or more over the limit is enough, by itself, to trigger a suspension for any adult driver.2Justia. Colorado Revised Statutes 42-2-127 – Authority to Suspend License – To Deny License – Type of Conviction – Points
Suspension Thresholds by Age
Younger drivers hit their limit faster:
- Under 18: more than 5 points in any 12-month period, or more than 6 total for pre-18 violations
- Ages 18–20: 9 points in any 12 months, 12 in any 24 months, or 14 total for post-18 violations
- 21 and older: 12 points in any 12 months, or 18 in any 24 months
A teenager who picks up a careless driving citation (4 points) and a 10-mph-over speeding ticket (4 points) in the same year has already crossed the 5-point line.2Justia. Colorado Revised Statutes 42-2-127 – Authority to Suspend License – To Deny License – Type of Conviction – Points
Responding to the Citation
Look at your ticket for one detail: is the Penalty Assessment box checked, or Summons? A penalty assessment lets you pay the fine and be done. A summons requires a court appearance on the listed date, with no pay-and-close option.3City of Glendale, Colorado. Traffic Offenses, Summons and Complaint Process
The 20-Day Deadline
For penalty assessments payable to the Department of Revenue, your payment must be postmarked within 20 days of the violation date. Miss that window and the citation converts to a court summons, meaning a mandatory appearance rather than a simple payment.4Department of Revenue. Tickets and Penalty Assessments
How to Pay
The Colorado Judicial Branch runs an online payment system where you can search by county, case number, ticket number, or name and pay fines, costs, and surcharges electronically.5Colorado Judicial Branch. Colorado Judicial Online Payment System You can also mail payment to the address on the citation or pay in person at the courthouse. Paying is an admission that you committed the violation, and any points attached to the offense go on your record.
Contesting the Ticket
You can ask for a hearing by following the instructions on the citation to notify the court that you intend to contest. A magistrate hears the case and issues a judgment based on whatever evidence both sides present.
Before the hearing, request the government’s evidence in writing. Include your name, the citation number, and the violation date. Ask for the officer’s notes from the stop and, in a speeding case, the calibration records for the radar or laser device. If the government ignores the request, you can ask the court to order disclosure, or in some cases move to dismiss the ticket. An out-of-calibration device can undercut the whole basis for a speeding charge, so those records are worth pursuing.
Ignoring the Ticket
Signing a penalty assessment or summons is a legal promise to either pay or appear. Break that promise and the court can issue a bench warrant, add fines, and suspend your license. The warrant stays active until you resolve the underlying citation, so a routine traffic stop years later can end in an arrest.
Unpaid fines can also go to a collection agency. The ticket itself won’t show up on your credit report, since the major credit bureaus no longer include non-bankruptcy public records, but a collection account can. If the original balance is over $100, most scoring models will factor it in, and the mark stays on your report for seven years from the date the debt became delinquent.
Insurance Costs After a Conviction
A moving violation conviction usually raises your auto insurance rate by more than the ticket itself. Industry data from 2024 showed average rate increases of 25 to 34% for a standard speeding ticket, with worse violations pushing higher. Insurers typically keep the violation on your rating profile for three to five years, so the increase compounds.
After a suspension or revocation, the state may require an SR-22 certificate of financial responsibility before reinstating your license. An SR-22 is not a separate policy but a form your insurer files with the state confirming you carry at least the minimum required coverage. Filing fees apply on top of the elevated premiums.6Department of Revenue. SR-22 and Insurance Information
Getting a Suspended License Back
If you lose your license for accumulating points, reinstatement requires a completed application, a $95 reinstatement fee paid by check or money order to the Department of Revenue, and proof of insurance. When you renew the reinstated license later, you’ll need to pass the written knowledge test again.7Department of Revenue. Reinstatement Frequently Asked Questions You can handle the process in person at a full-service driver license office or by mail, as long as the point suspension is the only restriction on your record.
Out-of-State Violations
Colorado belongs to the Driver License Compact, an interstate agreement that treats each driver as having one license and one record. Get a moving violation in another member state and that state reports the conviction to Colorado, which posts it to your driving record.8Legal Information Institute (LII). 1 CCR 204-30-2 – Interstate Driver License Compact Rule
One nuance: Colorado does not assess points for out-of-state convictions. The conviction shows on your record and can affect future licensing decisions, but it doesn’t count toward the point suspension thresholds.8Legal Information Institute (LII). 1 CCR 204-30-2 – Interstate Driver License Compact Rule Insurance companies pull the full record either way, so they’ll still see it.
Extra Rules for CDL Holders
Commercial license holders sit under a separate federal layer. You have to notify your employer in writing within 30 days of any non-parking traffic conviction, in any vehicle, whether or not you were driving commercially at the time. The obligation applies even if you’re appealing.9Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration. Must an Operator of a CMV Who Holds a CDL Notify His/Her Current Employer of a Conviction
Serious violations bring escalating disqualifications. A second serious violation within three years means 60 days off commercial vehicles; a third or subsequent within that window stretches the disqualification to 120 days.10eCFR. 49 CFR 383.51 – Disqualification of Drivers
Federal law also blocks a defense strategy that would otherwise be available. States can’t let CDL holders mask, defer, or divert any traffic conviction to keep it off the record. Plea bargains that reduce a moving violation to a non-moving offense and diversion programs that dismiss the charge after a course are off the table for CDL holders. The only exceptions are parking, vehicle weight, and vehicle defect violations.11eCFR. 49 CFR 384.226 – Prohibition on Masking Convictions