Los Angeles traffic ticket search – check status

Los Angeles traffic ticket search

Check traffic tickets online

(1)

Do you have a traffic ticket problem in Los Angeles? The first thing you should do is check the status of your traffic ticket. You can do this online at the Los Angeles Superior Court website:-

http://www.lacourt.org/division/traffic/traffic2.aspx

Show ALL your traffic tickets

On that courts page:

1. If you know your ticket number, then click to "Enter your ticket number" and you will be asked for:-
   • Your Court Location (found near the bottom of your traffic ticket)
   • Law Enforcement Agency (e.g. Los Angeles Police Department).  Found at the top of your Traffic Ticket.
   • Optionally your Date of Birth
2. If you do not have your ticket number, then click to Search by Drivers License.
   • Then enter your driver's license number, the state you are licensed in, and your date of birth.

The court website will pull up all your traffic ticket information for your tickets out of Los Angeles County.  It will tell you:-

• What court your traffic ticket is out of
• And the status of your ticket.

30-day delay

Note the warning on the court website that your ticket information may not be posted online until after 30 days, but that even if your ticket is not online, you must still take care of it by the deadline.

What your ticket status means

See below for details for:-

• In Collections FTA
• Arrest Warrant or Bench Warrant
• Failure to Pay
• Failure to Appear:
  • FTA RF Phase 1 or FTA RF Phase 2
  • DMV Driver License Hold
  • In Collections FTA

FTA (Failure to Appear)

If you fail to appear in court for a ticket, the Court will usually contact the DMV and put a hold on your license and your license will then soon be suspended.

When you fail to appear in court the court will first put your ticket in FTA RF Phase 1 - this means the court will charge you a $150 fee on top of your ticket fine and will then send you a letter indicating you have failed to appear in court. Once this letter is sent to you if you do not take any action on your ticket within 20 days the court will then put your ticket in FTA RF Phase 2 - this means the court will charge you another $150 and then will transfer control of your ticket from the court to GC Services, a collection agency.

FTA RF Phase 1 - this means the court will charge you an additional $150 fee on top of your original fine and send you a letter informing you of your failure to appear in court (FTA)

FTA RF Phase 2 - this means because you didn't take any action on your ticket within 20 days after a letter was sent to you, the court will then transfer your ticket to the control of GC Services, the collection agency and charge you another $150 for a total of $300 in civil assessment fees on top of your original ticket fine.

Please call us if your license is suspended and your ticket is in FTA RF Phase 1 or FTA RF Phase 2 or the status of your ticket is DMV Driver License Hold or In Collections FTA.  We can help in Los Angeles County - (310) 285-1516.

Warrant or In Collections FTA or Case Status - DMV Driver License Hold

If your traffic ticket status says warrant, bench warrant, arrest warrant, In Collections FTA, or Case Status - DMV Driver License Hold, then call us for a free legal consultation at 310-285-1516.  We can advise you how to clear these matters up and fight the fines and charges you are facing.

VC 40509.5 (Case Status - DMV Driver License Hold)

If the status of your ticket is VC 40509.5 In Collections FTA or DMV Driver License Hold this means the court has charged you with a failure to appear in court. This means you failed to take care of your ticket by the due date.  As a result of your failure to appear in court (VC 40509.5), the court system will now try to do three unpleasant things to you:-

1. The Court will increase the fine you are facing.  The fine you are potentially facing for your failure to appear in court (case status - In Collections FTA or DMV Driver License Hold (VC 40509.5) can now possibly be close to, or over $1,000.
2. The Court will contact the DMV and get the DMV to place a hold on your license which will most likely result in your license being suspended. If you do not have a California license but have a license from another state, and you failed to appear on a ticket in Los Angeles County, the Court will most likely contact the DMV of your state and place a hold on your license and prevent you from renewing your license. If you move out of state and try and apply for a license in a different state, you will most likely not be able to get a license until you clear up any failure to appear, VC 40509.5 (Case Status DMV Driver License hold), which you still have in California.
3. The Court will transfer control of your ticket to GC Services a collection agency. GC services will now have control of your ticket and will normally require you to agree to pay the full fine amount in order for you to get your license back.

Paying GC Services
Keep in mind, if you have not seen a Judge regarding your ticket and you pay GC Services the fine amount:-

• You are essentially pleading guilty to your ticket
• If the ticket was for a moving violation, such as a stop sign or speeding ticket, you are putting a DMV point on your record. A DMV point can result in your insurance rates going up. A DMV point can also possibly hurt you if you apply for a job that requires driving. Four DMV points in a one year period will result in the DMV trying to suspend your license for 6 months for being a negligent operator.  Read more about the DMV Points System and how it works.

Big fine, license suspended, ticket with GC Services
If you find yourself in this situation where you have a Case Status - DMV Driver License Hold or In Collections FTA and you are now facing a big fine and your license is suspended and your ticket has been assigned to GC Services, please call us because we can offer you another option besides paying GC Services. We like to help you clear up your license and fight the big fines and DMV point you might be facing.

Arrest Warrant or Bench Warrant

If the status of your ticket is arrest warrant or bench warrant, this usually means you were charged with a misdemeanor such as driving on a suspended license and you failed to appear in court or missed a court date. Many times people are given a ticket for a misdemeanor violation such as driving on a suspended license (VC 14601.1) or a ticket for driving without a license, driving on an out of state license or driving on an expired license (VC 12500) and they do not appear in court for these types of tickets.  When you fail to appear in court for a ticket with a misdemeanor charge, the Court usually issues a warrant for your arrest or bench warrant.  Please call us immediately so we can discuss how we can help clear up the warrant for your arrest or bench warrant.

Failure to Pay 

If your traffic ticket status says "failure to pay", previously called "matter set for compliance", that means you failed to pay the original fine by the due date. Your only option now is to pay the heavy fine.  We cannot help you in this situation. The only advice we can give you is to go to the court listed on your ticket in person and pay the fine completely to remove the hold on your license.

Check for Points on your Driver Record

(2) If your ticket is for a moving violation (a violation while the car was in motion), then you may want to check for how many points you already have on your DMV Driver's Record.  If you get 4 DMV points on your record in a 12 month period the DMV will send you a letter suspending your license for 6 months for being a negligent operator.  See how to check your DMV driver record.  Learn more about the California DMV points system and how it can lead to a suspended license.

It's better to fight your ticket

(3) Learn why it's better to fight your traffic ticket rather than just pay the fine (unless you have a Failure to Pay).

Courts - we can help

See also:

• How to check if your license is suspended
• How to pay your traffic ticket