Demerit or Point System

Do you understand New Hampshire’s point system and how it works? If you are stopped and ticketed, you could face many charges, but you could also get demerits on your driver’s license. Too many and you face revocation.

So, if you have been charged with any kind of driving violation, perhaps you should contact criminal defense attorney Michael Anzalone, who can help you better understand the system and how these points can adversely affect you.

The points are defined by the New Hampshire Department of Motor Vehicles and are quite simply a penalty system designed to revoke a driver’s license in the case of excessive careless driving.

The state has some 50 offenses and they classify each one by a ranking. Each violation is worth one, two, three, four, or six point offenses.

The points are determined by the seriousness of the offense.

On the lower end of the spectrum are the one-point violations. These have to do with more routine tasks, such as having your vehicle properly registered, inspections of your vehicle, or traffic violations that include issues such as operating a vehicle without a license.

Once you get to two-point offenses, they are slightly more serious. These offenses include failing to comply with police directions, not producing a driver’s license when requested to do so by a law enforcement officer, operating a vehicle that is not registered or operating a vehicle with the wrong class of driver’s license.

You might get a three-point violations for these kinds of infractions: following a vehicle too closely, driving on a sidewalk, failing to yield a right of way, disobeying a traffic control devise, speeding up to 24 miles per hour over the posted speed limit, or running a stop sign or a yield sign.

It is a four-point offense if you operate a motor vehicle without a driver’s license, improper passing of vehicles, driving more than 25 miles above the posted speed limit.

A six-point violation is the most serious of all the violations. It can often result in jail time, which can be a life-altering experience.

These kinds of violations include driving with a revoked license, racing or reckless driving, a school bus violation, vehicle title alteration, driving while under the influence of drugs and/or alcohol and transporting drugs in a car.

For a complete list of violations, you can check out the state’s DMV website.

Here’s an example of what accumulated points on your driving records can mean. If you are under the age of 21, 9 points in one year can result in up to three months of a suspended driver’s license, while 21 points in one year can cause you to lose driving privileges for up to one year.

If you are over 21, 12 points in a year gets up to a three month suspension, while 24 points can lead to a one-year suspension.

Your lawyer will tell you that these violations will stay on your driving record for three years. So it is best for you to talk to Michael Anzalone at The Anzalone Law Firm in Nashua, New Hampshire about getting the charges reduced.

Call Michael Anzalone today for a free consultation.