Colorado traffic infractions are civil offenses, not crimes, and they split into two classes with base fines from $15 to $200 or more once surcharges are added. If the violation is a moving one, you also pick up points on your driving record, and enough points will suspend your license. What you actually pay, and what else happens, depends on which violation you were cited for, 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 infractions cover everything else, including expired registration, broken taillights, improper parking, and equipment problems.
The split matters for two reasons. Points attach only to Class A infractions; the state has no authority to assess points for a Class B violation. And while the base fine range on paper is $15 to $100 for both classes, the statutory penalty schedule sets higher specific amounts for many Class A offenses, which is how you end up with speeding fines well above that ceiling.1Justia. Colorado Code 42-4-1701 – Traffic Offenses and Infractions Classified – Penalties – Penalty and Surcharge Schedule
What a Ticket Actually Costs
The number on the citation is the penalty. On top of that comes a mandatory surcharge, also set by statute. The total is what you owe. For the violations drivers see most often:
- Speeding 1–4 mph over: $30 penalty + $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 penalty with a $6–$24 surcharge depending on the specific issue
- Expired registration: $50 + $16 = $66
If no specific amount is listed for your violation, the default is $15 plus a $4 surcharge.1Justia. Colorado Code 42-4-1701 – Traffic Offenses and Infractions Classified – Penalties – Penalty and Surcharge Schedule
Doubled Penalties in School and Construction Zones
A moving violation in a posted school zone doubles both the penalty and the surcharge. The same doubling applies in highway maintenance, repair, and construction zones. A 10–19 mph speeding ticket that would run $151 becomes $302 in a school zone. The doubling can only happen once. If a school zone and a construction zone overlap, you pay double, not quadruple.1Justia. Colorado Code 42-4-1701 – Traffic Offenses and Infractions Classified – Penalties – Penalty and Surcharge Schedule
Points by Violation
The Colorado Department of Revenue records every moving violation conviction and attaches points. The weight varies sharply by severity:
- 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
A 12-point conviction on its own is enough to trigger an immediate suspension for an 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 have lower limits, and all thresholds run on rolling windows:
- Under 18: more than 5 points in any 12-month period, or more than 6 points total for violations committed before turning 18
- Ages 18–20: 9 points in any 12 months, 12 points in any 24 months, or 14 total points for violations after turning 18
- 21 and older: 12 points in any 12 months, or 18 points in any 24 months
A teen driver who picks up a careless driving citation (4 points) and a 10 mph 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 the box that says either Penalty Assessment or Summons. A penalty assessment lets you simply pay the fine. A summons requires you to appear in court on the listed date, with no pay-and-be-done 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 it and the citation converts to a court summons, which means a mandatory appearance instead of a simple payment.4Department of Revenue. Tickets and Penalty Assessments An $80 speeding ticket you could have mailed in becomes a court date, lost work time, and worse if you then miss the hearing.
How to Pay
The Colorado Judicial Branch runs an online payment portal where you can search by county, case number, ticket number, or name and pay electronically.5Colorado Judicial Branch. Colorado Judicial Online Payment System You can also mail payment to the address on the citation or pay at the courthouse. Paying is an admission of the violation, and any associated points go on your record.
Contesting the Ticket
To fight the charge, follow the instructions on the citation to notify the court, and you’ll be given a hearing date. A magistrate hears the evidence and rules. Before the hearing you can request copies of what the government plans to use against you, including the officer’s notes and calibration records for any radar or laser device. Put the request in writing with your name, the citation number, and the violation date. If it’s ignored, you can ask the court to compel disclosure or move to dismiss. Calibration records are particularly worth asking for in a speeding case, because an out-of-calibration device undermines the basis for the charge.
If You Ignore the Ticket
Signing a penalty assessment or summons is a legal promise to pay or appear. Breaking that promise can produce a bench warrant, additional fines, and license suspension. The warrant stays active until the underlying citation is resolved, so a routine traffic stop years later can turn into an arrest.
Even without a warrant, unpaid fines can be sent to collections. The ticket itself won’t appear on your credit report, but a collection account can. If the original balance exceeds $100, most scoring models factor it in, and the mark stays for seven years from the date the debt became delinquent.
Insurance and SR-22
The fine is the small cost. A moving violation conviction typically produces a sizable auto insurance rate increase that compounds over the three to five years most insurers keep the violation on your rating profile.
After certain suspensions or revocations, the state will require an SR-22 before reinstating your license. The SR-22 is not a separate policy; it’s a form your insurer files with the state certifying you carry at least the minimum required coverage. Maintaining it costs a filing fee on top of your (higher) premium.6Department of Revenue. SR-22 and Insurance Information
Reinstating a License Suspended for Points
Getting your license back after a point suspension takes three things: a completed reinstatement application, a $95 reinstatement fee paid by check or money order to the Department of Revenue, and proof of insurance. When you later renew the reinstated license, you’ll need to pass the written knowledge test again.7Department of Revenue. Reinstatement Frequently Asked Questions Reinstatement can be done 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 Tickets
Colorado belongs to the Driver License Compact, which operates on the principle of one driver, one license, one record. If you hold a Colorado license and get a moving violation in another member state, that state reports the conviction back and the Department of Revenue posts it to your record.8Legal Information Institute (LII). 1 CCR 204-30-2 – Interstate Driver License Compact Rule
One important limit: 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 thresholds above.8Legal Information Institute (LII). 1 CCR 204-30-2 – Interstate Driver License Compact Rule Insurers, however, pull the full record and will see it regardless.
If You Hold a CDL
Commercial driver’s license holders face a federal layer on top of the state system. You must notify your employer in writing within 30 days of any non-parking traffic conviction, in any vehicle, whether or not you were driving commercially when it happened, and the obligation applies even while you appeal.9Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration. Must an Operator of a CMV Who Holds a CDL Notify His/Her Current Employer of a Conviction
Serious traffic violations trigger escalating disqualifications. A second serious violation within three years means a 60-day disqualification from operating a commercial vehicle; a third or subsequent within that window pushes it to 120 days.10eCFR. 49 CFR 383.51 – Disqualification of Drivers
Federal law also closes off what would otherwise be a useful option in traffic court. States cannot allow CDL holders to mask, defer, or divert a traffic conviction to keep it off the record. Plea bargains that reduce a moving violation to a non-moving one, and diversion programs that dismiss the charge after a course, are not available if you hold a commercial license. The only exceptions are parking, vehicle weight, and vehicle defect violations.11eCFR. 49 CFR 384.226 – Prohibition on Masking Convictions