A traffic violation can be anything from something minor — forgetting to turn on your blinker when switching lanes — to something more severe that results in a court case with potentially hefty fines. Getting involved in a traffic violation that results in a ticket is not unusual since as many as one in five Americans got a traffic ticket within the previous five years as of 2015.

Many traffic violations don't require much more than paying the fine involved, but others require the assistance of a traffic violation lawyer. When should you hire a traffic violation lawyer for your recent ticket or offense? When you're ready to hire a lawyer, get a consultation with a lawyer who specializes in traffic violations to see if you will make a good client/legal representative match.

You're facing losing your drivers license

So many points on your driver record due to previous traffic offenses like speeding tickets, inattentive driving, and other offenses on the road can lead to you losing your driver's license for a time. Since losing your license can result in having peaked auto insurance rates — like SR22 — and facing serious legal charges if you're caught driving in the future without a license, it's wise to hire a traffic violation lawyer to assist you.

While your lawyer cannot guarantee you will not lose your license, they will use your current good driver history, any positive impact you have on the community, your job or family obligations, and other positive aspects that are personal to you to indicate to the judge and prosecuting attorney that losing your license is a harsh offense. Your lawyer will attempt to make a plea deal for you or help drop charges to help make your case move more favorably your direction.

You're facing potential jail time

Some traffic violations, such as child endangerment, driving without privileges, and other charges, can be very serious in nature and can lead to potential jail time. If you want to avoid going to jail or have a time served sentence with lesser consequences, you cannot rely on your own defenses alone. You need to hire a traffic violation lawyer who will work hard to help reduce any charges against you to help you avoid jail time.

Your traffic violation lawyer will go over your case and use their experience in traffic law to aid you in the best outcome for your situation. Always be honest with your lawyer regarding your case and show up to every court date on time or early; never speak out of line and let your lawyer guide you when dealing with judges and the prosecuting attorney regarding your traffic violation case.