An infraction is the lowest level of legal violation in the United States, punishable by a fine but never by jail time. In most states it is treated as a non-criminal, civil matter, so a finding against you does not create a criminal record. Traffic tickets make up the bulk of infraction cases, but municipal rules like noise ordinances, leash laws, and littering bans produce them too. The fine itself is often the smallest part of the picture: an infraction can also drive up your insurance, add points to your license, and in some situations threaten a commercial driving career.
What Counts as an Infraction
Moving violations fill most infraction dockets. Speeding a few miles over the limit, rolling through a stop sign, failing to signal, and running a red light are the routine traffic court cases. Equipment problems round out the traffic side: a burned-out headlight, expired registration tags, or an unreadable license plate.
Outside of driving, cities and counties use infractions to enforce community rules. Littering, playing amplified music during restricted hours, smoking in prohibited areas, staying in a public park after closing, and walking an unleashed dog in a restricted zone all qualify. Some jurisdictions also issue infractions for minor permit problems, like starting a home renovation without the required building permit. The focus is public order through a fine, not punishment of criminal intent.
How an Infraction Differs From a Crime
The defining feature is that an infraction cannot result in jail time. That single fact drives nearly every procedural difference between infractions and misdemeanors or felonies.
Because no jail is at stake, you have no constitutional right to a court-appointed attorney. The Supreme Court held in Scott v. Illinois that the Sixth Amendment requires appointed counsel only when a defendant actually faces imprisonment.1Library of Congress. Scott v. Illinois, 440 U.S. 367 (1979) You can hire your own lawyer, but the court will not provide one.
You also have no right to a jury. In Blanton v. City of North Las Vegas, the Supreme Court established that offenses carrying six months or less of potential imprisonment are presumed “petty” and fall outside the jury trial guarantee.2Library of Congress. Blanton v. City of North Las Vegas, 489 U.S. 538 (1989) Infractions carry no imprisonment at all, so a judge or magistrate hears them alone in a bench trial.
The standard of proof is lower. In a criminal case the government must prove guilt beyond a reasonable doubt. For infractions, it usually needs to show only a preponderance of the evidence, meaning the judge must find it more likely than not that the violation occurred.3United States District Court, District of Vermont. Burden of Proof – Preponderance of Evidence A handful of jurisdictions use the clear and convincing standard, which is higher but still below the criminal bar.
Finally, an infraction does not produce a criminal conviction. A judgment is a civil entry, not a criminal record, and infractions generally do not appear on standard criminal background checks. A traffic infraction will show up on your driving record, however, which is visible to insurers and some employers.
What to Do When You Get a Citation
Signing a citation is not an admission of guilt. It is a promise to either appear in court or resolve the matter by the deadline printed on the ticket. Refusing to sign can lead to an on-the-spot arrest in some jurisdictions, because the officer has no other assurance you will respond.
Response windows commonly run 30 to 90 days. You generally have three options:
- Plead guilty and pay the fine.
- Plead not guilty and request a hearing where the officer or prosecutor must prove the violation.
- Plead no contest, which accepts the penalty without admitting or denying the facts. The fine and points are the same as a guilty plea, but the plea cannot be used against you as an admission in a separate civil lawsuit.
Most courts now take pleas and payments through online portals. Mail and in-person options still exist. Whichever route you use, keep the citation number handy so the court can match your response to the correct file.
What an Infraction Actually Costs
The base fine on the ticket is only part of what you pay. Base fines typically run from around $20 for minor violations like parking tickets up to $500 for more serious moving violations. Nearly every jurisdiction then adds surcharges, court facility fees, and state-mandated penalty assessments. A $25 base fine can balloon to $150 or more once those are added, and more serious violations commonly total $400 to $800.
These add-ons are not discretionary. They are set by statute or court rule and collected automatically by the clerk. Some are earmarked for specific funds like courthouse construction, emergency medical services, or victim compensation. The total out-of-pocket number often has little resemblance to the base fine.
Fix-It Tickets and Correctable Violations
Not every infraction has to end with the full fine. Equipment-related violations like a broken taillight, expired registration, or missing proof of insurance are often classified as correctable or “fix-it” tickets. The idea is simple: fix the problem, show proof, and pay a small dismissal fee instead of the full amount.
Typical correctable items include burned-out lights, expired registration, an expired or missing driver’s license, and failure to carry proof of insurance. You usually get the correction verified either by having a police officer sign the back of the citation or by bringing documentation to the court clerk, then pay a processing fee. Ignore a fix-it ticket past the deadline and it converts to a standard infraction with the full fine and surcharges attached.
What Happens If You Ignore the Ticket
This is where a minor matter turns into a major one. Ignoring a citation does not make it go away. The court typically enters a default judgment, finding you responsible without a hearing. From there, consequences stack up:
- Late fees ranging from $10 to $250 or more.
- Automatic driver’s license suspension in many states for failure to appear or pay.
- A bench warrant for arrest for failure to appear, even on a simple traffic ticket.
- Vehicle registration holds that block renewal until the matter is cleared.
Federal tickets follow the same pattern. If you fail to pay or appear on a citation issued on federal property, the U.S. District Court can issue a summons or arrest warrant and report the failure to your state motor vehicle agency, putting your driving privileges at risk.4United States Courts. What Happens If I Don’t Pay the Ticket or Appear in Court People get arrested on outstanding traffic warrants during routine police encounters years after the original ticket.
How It Affects Your License and Insurance
A traffic infraction that ends in a conviction or paid fine goes on your driving record. Most states use a point system, assigning a numeric value to each violation. Accumulate enough points in a set period and the state suspends your license. Thresholds vary widely, with some states suspending at 8 points in a year and others allowing up to 24 points over three years. The most common threshold is roughly 12 points within a one- to two-year window.
Points generally stay active for two to five years, depending on the state. Even after they expire for suspension purposes, the underlying conviction often remains on your record longer and stays visible to insurers.
On the insurance side, premiums almost always rise. Industry data shows the average increase after a single speeding ticket for going 11 to 15 mph over the limit is roughly 20 to 23 percent. Results vary by insurer, and some are more forgiving on a first offense. The increase typically persists for three to five years, which means one ticket can add hundreds, sometimes over a thousand dollars, to your total insurance costs over that stretch.
Traffic School as an Off-Ramp
Many jurisdictions let you attend a state-approved defensive driving or traffic safety course in exchange for a dismissed ticket or no points on your record. For a first offense, this is often the smartest move, because it protects both the driving record and the insurance rate.
Eligibility rules differ. Common restrictions include a limit on how often you can use the option (typically once every 12 to 24 months), a requirement that the violation is a minor moving infraction, and a clean recent record. Some courts require a request before the hearing date; others handle it at the hearing itself. You pay for the course, usually between $20 and $100, and the court may still require part or all of the base fine. Against a multi-year insurance increase, the math almost always favors the class.
Fighting an Infraction
If you plead not guilty, the court schedules a hearing. Infractions are lower-stakes proceedings, but you still have practical tools to work with.
Many states allow you to request discovery before trial, including the officer’s notes, calibration records for speed-detection equipment, and instruction manuals for enforcement devices. The request usually needs to go in writing to both the citing agency and the local prosecutor. If they ignore it, you can file a motion asking the judge to compel production. Persistence matters, because some officers and prosecutors are not used to discovery requests in traffic court.
At the hearing, the government bears the burden of proof. If the citing officer does not show up, many courts dismiss the case outright. If the officer does testify, you can cross-examine on details: where they were positioned, how they measured your speed, whether sight lines were obstructed, whether equipment was calibrated properly. The preponderance standard means a vague “maybe not” defense usually falls short; you need to point to a specific weakness.
If the judge finds you responsible, most jurisdictions allow an appeal through a trial de novo, meaning a higher court conducts a completely new trial. Notice of appeal is typically due within 30 days of the judgment, and a filing fee or bond usually applies. Appeals are uncommon on infractions because the fines rarely justify the cost, but if the ticket would trigger a license suspension or affect a professional license, it can be worth pursuing.
If You Cannot Afford to Pay
Fines hit hardest on people who can least afford them. The worst move is ignoring the citation, because that triggers late fees, suspension, and possibly a warrant, which deepen the financial hole.
Many courts offer installment plans that break the total into monthly amounts. These usually require a financial disclosure form, and some courts set payments as a percentage of net income. Judges in most jurisdictions also have discretion to reduce or waive fines based on hardship.
There is a constitutional floor. In Bearden v. Georgia, the Supreme Court held that a court cannot jail someone solely for being unable to pay a fine. If you made genuine efforts to pay and simply lack the resources, the court must consider alternatives like community service, extended timelines, or a reduced amount before resorting to incarceration.5Justia. Bearden v. Georgia, 461 U.S. 660 (1983) That protection exists, but you have to show up to assert it. Failing to appear denies the court the chance to consider your situation at all.
Two Situations Where the Stakes Are Higher
Commercial drivers face federal consequences that regular drivers do not. Federal regulations classify certain moving violations as “serious traffic violations” for CDL holders even when the driver was in a personal vehicle at the time. The list includes speeding 15 mph or more over the limit, reckless driving, improper lane changes, and following too closely. Two serious violations within three years trigger a 60-day disqualification from operating a commercial vehicle; a third within the same window extends the disqualification to 120 days.6eCFR. 49 CFR 383.51 – Disqualification of Drivers For a commercial driver, what looks like a minor speeding ticket can be career-altering if it is the second or third in a short span.
Citations issued on federal property follow a different path. The Assimilative Crimes Act lets the federal government enforce state traffic laws on federal land, so the underlying violation is usually the same as it would be on a state road.7Office of the Law Revision Counsel. 18 USC 13 – Laws of States Adopted for Areas Within Federal Jurisdiction Processing is handled federally. Federal law enforcement mails the violation notice to the Central Violations Bureau, which then sends a Notice to Appear roughly four weeks before the court date. If the notice lists a fine amount, you can usually pay it directly to the CVB and skip the appearance. To contest the ticket, you appear at the U.S. District Court on the date specified.8United States District Court, Central District of California. Central Violations Bureau – Federal Ticket