Motor Vehicle Citation

[JaniceB282355]

I had Corona in November, I wasn't hospitalized, was told to stay in bed which I did for almost three weeks. Finally in December I felt strong enough to drive myself to the doctors.
I was pulled over for expired tags. I was shocked as I usually get an email from Service AZ and did not get one in November.
I went to court and the Judge did not fine me but the charge went against my driving record. I asked him why I didn't get an email as usual and he explained that the system had a problem and didn't send out the reminders as usual. He said that it was my duty to renew even if I didn't get a reminder.
Unfortunately, I thought he had thrown the whole thing out but he didn't. The citation is on my driving record and now I am seeing an increase in my insurance rate of $129 for six months!
I am 71 years old, living on Social Security and only drive around 6,000 miles a year. Is there any other way to try and have this violation removed due to circumstances beyond my control?

[Travis55Chevy]

The court got it right. Just like the auto manufacturer is not responsible for oil changes it is the owners responsibility to register his tags. It dosen't matter about the circumstances the fact is you were in violation of the statutes.  The insurance industry answers to no one. your rates could have gone up because you are now a new policy holder  because of the expiration of your registration. Sound fair?  of course not  but consider you could have been cancelled you could call around to new insurance agents but that tag violation is going to follow you.

[GailL1]

@JaniceB282355 

I find it hard to believe that the $ 129 per 6-months is due to this infraction because it is not a moving violation. 

Look at your coverage and under which part of it was the increase or was it spread out over many types of coverages.

Most likely it has more to do with other things like:

• you crossed over into another age bracket - Insurance companies treat elderly drivers almost the same as ​​teen drivers. Senior discounts usually kick in around 55 years old, but if you are over 70 years old, your rate will probably start to climb.
• new and used cars now have a lots of value - the average new car these days cost over $37,000 - hit one of those and your insurance has to pay A LOT.
• medical cost are also higher
• you may live in a zip code that has experienced a lot of car accidents, car theft or car break-ins
• your credit score also affects your rates - so did that take a dive for some reason.

Since this infraction is not a moving violation - in fact, it has little to do with your actual driving so it should have little effect.

Talk to your insurance agent and find out why there was this increase.  Then you can take action to try and reduce it by:

• make sure they have you rated as a low miles driver - most times you can set the miles; the lower the miles, the lower the premium
• make sure you check your credit score for any changes
• you could adjust your deductible(s) up to modify your premiums

Your insurance agent should be able to make sure you are insured properly based on your details - talk it over with your agent.

[Rhymesometimes]

@GailL1  This is a lot of great information.  Especially rates going up after 70, ( which my hubby just turned ) going to look over our policy in the next year and see if there is any affect.  Thank you.   ---  Christine