Updated October 2026 | The Bulldog Law | California Traffic Violations Defense

A California speeding ticket has a base fine of $35 to $100, and a total cost of roughly $238 to $490 once the state and county penalty assessments, the court fees, and the surcharges are added, with a ticket for driving over 100 mph reaching $900 or more. It adds one point to the DMV record for three years, two points for seven years if the speed was over 100, and the point raises insurance premiums for as long as it shows, unless the driver completes traffic school, which hides it. Nearly all speeding tickets are infractions, with no jail and no criminal record. Most are written under the basic speed law, Vehicle Code 22350, which prohibits driving faster than is reasonable for conditions; the rest under 22349, the 65 and 55 mph maximums, and 22348(b), driving over 100. Every one of them can be contested, and the defenses, the measurement method, the speed trap law, and the officer's failure to appear, dismiss more tickets than drivers expect.

The Bulldog Law's attorneys handle speeding tickets for two kinds of clients: the driver with a commercial license, a clean record to protect, or a points problem, for whom a single ticket matters, and the driver whose speeding citation came with something worse, a reckless driving charge, a speed contest allegation, a DUI, a suspended license, or a search that turned up more than a radar reading. What follows is the cost, the points, the statutes, the traffic school rules, the trial options, and the defenses, written for the first group, with the escalations that produce the second at the end. Call (888) 928-1609 or message our team.

What a speeding ticket costs

California sets the base fine by how far over the limit the driver was, then adds penalty assessments under the Penal Code and Government Code that multiply it several times over, plus a court operations fee, a conviction assessment, and county-specific surcharges. The figures below are the uniform bail schedule's approximate totals; counties vary by a few dollars, and some charge more.

Traffic school adds its own fee, typically $50 to $70 to the court plus the school's charge, but it is the better investment for most drivers, because the insurance increase from a point commonly exceeds the ticket's cost several times over across three years. A driver who ignores the ticket faces a civil assessment, a hold on the license, and, in time, a bench warrant on a failure to appear, which turns a $238 infraction into a misdemeanor.

The points

The DMV assigns one point for an ordinary speeding conviction, retained for three years from the violation date, and two points for driving over 100 mph, reckless driving, a speed contest, DUI, and hit and run, retained for seven years. A driver who accumulates four points in 12 months, six in 24, or eight in 36 is presumed a negligent operator and faces a six-month suspension and a year of probation, with a hearing available to contest it. Commercial drivers are assessed 1.5 times the points for violations in a commercial vehicle and face the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration's separate serious-violation rules, under which two speeding violations of 15 mph or more over the limit in three years disqualify the CDL for 60 days.

Insurers see the points, not the fines, and a single point raises premiums by an amount that varies by carrier but commonly runs 20 to 30 percent for three years. Traffic school, available for most infractions once every 18 months, results in a confidential conviction that is not reported to insurers and carries no point, and it is the reason to pay for a course rather than simply pay the fine. Drivers with commercial licenses are not eligible for traffic school on violations in a commercial vehicle. A driver already required to carry an SR-22 has more reason than most to keep the point off.

The three speed statutes

The basic speed law. Vehicle Code 22350 provides that no person shall drive at a speed greater than is reasonable or prudent having due regard for weather, visibility, the traffic on, and the surface and width of, the highway, and in no event at a speed which endangers the safety of persons or property. It is the statute on most California speeding tickets, and it has a consequence drivers do not expect: the posted limit on most roads is a prima facie limit under Vehicle Code 22352, which means that exceeding it is presumed unsafe but the presumption can be rebutted by evidence that the speed was reasonable for the conditions, and that driving under it can still be a violation if conditions made the speed dangerous. A ticket for 40 in a 35 on a clear, empty, six-lane road is contestable on the ground that 40 was reasonable; a ticket for 30 in a 35 in dense fog is valid.

The maximum speed law. Vehicle Code 22349 sets absolute limits that no condition excuses: 65 mph on most highways, 55 on two-lane undivided highways, and the posted limit where the Department of Transportation has set a higher or lower one, up to 70 on some freeways. Exceeding a maximum is a violation regardless of how safe the speed was, and there is no prima facie argument. Vehicle Code 22356 covers the 70 mph zones, and 22406 sets the 55 mph limit for trucks, buses, and vehicles towing.

Over 100. Vehicle Code 22348(b) makes driving over 100 mph a separate infraction with a fine of up to $500 for a first offense, two points, and authority for the court to suspend the license for 30 days; a second offense within three years carries up to $750 and a six-month suspension. It is the most expensive infraction in the code, and it is the one most often charged alongside the misdemeanors described below.

Contesting the ticket

A speeding ticket is a criminal infraction, and the driver is entitled to a trial at which the prosecution, in practice the citing officer, must prove the violation beyond a reasonable doubt. There are two routes. A court trial, at which the driver appears, the officer testifies, and the driver cross-examines and presents evidence. And a trial by written declaration under Vehicle Code 40902, in which the driver submits a written statement and evidence, the officer submits a written statement, and a judge decides on the papers; a driver who loses may request a trial de novo, a new in-person trial, within 20 days. The written declaration is used heavily because officers frequently do not submit their statements, which results in dismissal, and because it preserves the second chance.

The defenses that succeed:

The measurement. Radar and lidar readings require a calibrated device, an officer trained and certified on it, a tuning fork or self-test log, and a clear line to the target vehicle in traffic. Pacing requires a sufficient distance at a constant following interval with a calibrated speedometer. Visual estimates are weak. The defense requests the calibration records and the training records, and gaps in either are the case.

The speed trap law. Vehicle Code 40802 prohibits speed traps, defined to include enforcement by radar or other electronic device on a road whose prima facie speed limit is not justified by an engineering and traffic survey conducted within the last five years, or seven or ten years under conditions the statute specifies. On a surveyed road the survey must support the posted limit; on an unsurveyed road, radar evidence is inadmissible and the officer who used it is incompetent to testify to the speed. Local streets are the ones most often without a current survey, and the request for the survey is the first step in every 22350 case on a local road. The law does not apply to 22349 maximum-speed violations or to 22348(b).

The basic speed law itself. On a prima facie road, evidence that the speed was reasonable for the conditions, light traffic, good weather, a wide straight road, is a defense to a 22350 ticket, and the driver's photographs and testimony are the evidence.

Identification and the officer's appearance. The officer must identify the driver and the vehicle. An officer who does not appear at a court trial, or does not submit a declaration, produces a dismissal, and the rate of non-appearance is high enough that many drivers contest for that reason alone.

Our attorneys handle contested tickets for drivers whose records make the point expensive, and the stop sign, carpool lane, and tint pages describe the parallel process for those citations. The difference between an infraction and a misdemeanor is the difference between this process and a criminal case, and a traffic trial is one of the few proceedings in which the defendant is not entitled to a jury.

When speeding becomes a crime

Reckless driving. Vehicle Code 23103 makes it a misdemeanor to drive with willful or wanton disregard for the safety of persons or property, and speed well over the limit, in traffic, weaving, or at night, is charged as reckless driving at the officer's discretion. Up to 90 days in jail, two points, and a criminal record; our page on reckless driving covers the statute, and the reduction of a reckless driving charge to a speeding infraction is a common negotiated outcome.

Speed contests and exhibitions of speed. Vehicle Code 23109 makes racing on a highway, and an exhibition of speed, which can be a single driver accelerating hard, a misdemeanor with up to 90 days, impoundment of the vehicle for 30 days, and a suspension; the speed contest page covers it. Street takeover enforcement since 2022 has increased these charges substantially.

Speeding with injury or death. A speed violation that causes injury can be charged as reckless driving causing injury, a wobbler, and a death as vehicular manslaughter under Penal Code 192(c), with gross negligence as a felony.

The stop that became a search. A speeding stop is a lawful detention, and what happens after it, the questions, the request to search, the odor, the dog, is governed by the rules our attorneys describe on our reasonable suspicion page. A speeding ticket that arrived with a DUI arrest, a suspended license charge, or a drug or firearm count is no longer a traffic case, and the speeding citation is the foundation the rest is built on.

Frequently asked questions

How much is a speeding ticket in California?

The base fine is small, $35 for 1 to 15 mph over, $70 for 16 to 25 over, $100 for 26 or more over, but penalty assessments and fees multiply it. The total a driver actually pays runs roughly $238 for 1 to 15 over, $367 for 16 to 25 over, $490 for 26 or more over, and about $900 or more for driving over 100 mph, with county surcharges varying the figure. A ticket in a construction or school zone adds more. Traffic school costs an additional fee but keeps the point off the record.

How many points is a speeding ticket in California?

One point for an ordinary speeding violation, which stays on the DMV record for three years. Driving over 100 mph is two points for seven years, as is reckless driving or a speed contest. Four points in 12 months, six in 24, or eight in 36 triggers a negligent operator suspension. Completing traffic school on an eligible ticket, once every 18 months, keeps the point from being reported to insurers.

Is speeding a misdemeanor in California?

Ordinary speeding is an infraction, with a fine and a point but no jail. Driving over 100 mph under Vehicle Code 22348(b) is still an infraction but carries a larger fine, two points, and a possible 30-day license suspension. Speeding becomes a misdemeanor when it is charged as reckless driving under Vehicle Code 23103, as an exhibition of speed or speed contest under 23109, or when it results in injury. Those carry jail exposure and a criminal record.

What is the basic speed law in California?

Vehicle Code 22350: no person shall drive at a speed greater than is reasonable or prudent having due regard for weather, visibility, traffic, and the surface and width of the highway, and in no event at a speed that endangers persons or property. It means a driver can be cited for going under the posted limit if conditions made that speed unsafe, and, less often, that a driver going over a prima facie limit can argue the speed was safe. Most speeding tickets are written under 22350.

How do you fight a speeding ticket in California?

By contesting it at trial, in court or by trial by written declaration, where the officer must prove the speed and the violation. Defenses include the method of measurement, radar or lidar calibration and training, pacing distance, and visual estimates; the speed trap law, which bars radar enforcement on roads without a current engineering survey; the basic speed law, where the posted limit was a prima facie limit and the speed was safe; and identification. Many tickets are dismissed when the officer does not appear, and a trial by written declaration can be followed by a trial de novo if lost.

Related reading from our attorneys

• Running a stop sign in California: Vehicle Code 22450
• Reckless driving under Vehicle Code 23103
• Infraction vs. misdemeanor: what is the difference?

A ticket you cannot afford to have on your record, or a stop that became a case? Both are contested the same way

The Bulldog Law's traffic violations attorneys contest speeding citations for commercial and high-stakes drivers and defend the reckless driving, speed contest, and DUI cases that begin with a speeding stop, in courts across California. Visit our criminal defense page, call (888) 928-1609, or reach us online.