[328Toronto]

I got a speeding ticket yesterday (82 km/h in a 60-Zone -> 3 demerit point) :mad:

I'd like your opinion if it's worth to give my ticket to XCopper to fight it or if I should do it myself.

What are my chances & time effort to get the ticket reduced to 15km over without demerit points if I go to court myslelf vs let XCopper do everything.

I know there is another thread on fighting traffic tickets, but the was a bit more complex - mine is pretty straight forward I would think

[ctgazer]

xcopper will be able to get you off you points, but you'd prolly have to pay the fine...i called them the other day on behalf of a friend and she got a ticket for makin a left when you arent supposed to...$110 fine with a 2 point deduction. its considered a moving violation. they said, that they can get the points deducted but were unsure as to the fine. if they didnt get the points deducted, then you wouldnt have to pay

[328Toronto]

thanks for your quick response ... so when they say "we win or it's free" they mean they get my demerit points waived or reduced .... so in the end i would pay less for the ticket (I assume), get my points waived (which is important) and pay $200-300 to XCopper ....

what I am asking myself is: is my case so simple & straight forward that I could save the $200-300 just by showing up at the court and ask for a reduction ..
that's more or less what the cop suggested after he gave me the ticket ....

[ctgazer]

well, every case is different to them. you sign a contract with them before hand...its really case specific. as for just going to court and representing yourself, thats a gamble you'll have to take. the x-coppers are from that business so they know more or less, some important people...i'd rather pay the fine (prolly $200) plus x-copper fees $300 than risk my insurance going up

its cheaper in the end

[Soundstream]

What 99% of the public fails to realize is that a 3 point ticket and a 0 point ticket is the SAME THING in the eyes of the insurance company.

Sure, your license will have fewer demerit points, but your insurance company will still mark it as a strike against you.

You need to have the ticket overturned 100% in order to prevent it from affecting your rates.

[JeeZues]

What I understand is that your insurance will go up regardless of the points/fine. What matter is a convection. Although, some insurance companies ignore the first convection.

Speed limits are a joke most of the time, if it is safe for an old car (and in bad shape - good enough to pass safety) to go 100km/hr on the 401 then a car designed to go 250+km/hr should be able to do a bit more than 100km/hr.
Go ahead and flame me :mad:

Good luck...

[SGxi]

Originally Posted by Soundstream

What 99% of the public fails to realize is that a 3 point ticket and a 0 point ticket is the SAME THING in the eyes of the insurance company.

Sure, your license will have fewer demerit points, but your insurance company will still mark it as a strike against you.

You need to have the ticket overturned 100% in order to prevent it from affecting your rates.

+1

Anything in your record, that means something to the insurance company. This came directly from my insurance agent.

The we win or it's free thing, I think that only works if they say yes, we will be able to win this up front. One of my friend had one of the ticket fighters (don't remember which one) fought for him and they told him upfront that they can probably get the fines/points reduced, but won't be able to win the case. So they are charging him even though they are not technially going to "win"

[Chiggy]

I was doing 94km/h in a 60 zone, I used Xcopper since a lot of my friends had tried it and had success. Their service cost was roughly double what my fine was for my ticket. They lost and paid the ticket for me. So it's not quite free when they lose, as they've already made their money from you.

Typically they have a good success rate but I think when I get my next ticket I'll fight it myself.

Good luck with your ticket.

[tirana]

If you have the time and a clean driving record, go to the courthouse within 14 days yourself and be prepared to wait for about 2 hours. If you plead guilty with a reason (e.g. I have a clean license and am a careful driver....) you'll get the demerits knocked off by them reducing the speed you plead to (say 68 km/h in a 60) and a much reduced fine. However, it is still a conviction and will stay on your record for 3 years. Whether that impacts your insurance is up to the insurance agency. Many times it doesn't - especially if you have been with them for a long period and haven't made a claim. However, if you switch insurance companies for any reason, it'll likely be taken into consideration in setting your rates.

If you plead not guilty, you'll need either a good excuse (and there are none for speeding) or hope that the officer doesn't turn up in court. This means you have to set another court date and spend more time. In many cases the officer doesn't turn up and the case will be dismissed and you will have no blemish. However, if he does turn up, expect the judge to side with the officer and you'll likely pay the original fine + demerits + court charges.

So, it comes down to the value of your time, the potential increase in your insurance and luck. Everyone speeds to varying degrees and we rarely get caught. So it's a reverse lottery.

Personally, I don't think X-Copper is worthwhile for speeding. They rely on ignorance (we got your points and fine reduced) and convenience - can you afford 2+ hours? But you still have to spend time with X-Copper.

[DILLIGAF]

An 82 in a 60....i wouldnt go to Xcopper or any of those places in your particular case. You can walk into court on your own and very likely have that reduced to a 75 in a 60 which will cost you around a $70 fine and no demerit points.

You must keep in mind the courts have NO control over taking away/reducing your points. Your demerit points are are administered by the ministry of transportation upon conviction. The amount of demerit points you receive depends on the offence. Not wearing you seatbelt, and moving violations (speeding, careless driving, fail to stop for a stop sign) result in demerit points, equipment offences (ie. having one headlight working, improper turn signal color) do not carry demerit points. With respect to Speeding the amount of demerits depends on what speed you are convicted at and increases respectively with convictions to higher speeds. A conviction of a speed from 1 to 15 km/h over the limit will result in only a fine, 16km to 19 km/h over results in 2 demerit points, 20km/h+ results in 3 demerit points and so on. So your best bet it to try to get it reduced so that you plead guilty to 15 over. The justice of the peace can control the fine you pay, but the cant do anything about the points.

The prosecutor could offer you a deal where you plead guilty to the original speed (82 in a 60...22 over the limit)and suggest to the J.P. to reduce your fine to $20 dollars. In that case you still get 3 demerit points.

Realistically you can likely get it reduced to a 75 in a 60 which results in no points and a fine in the area of $70. Keep in mind the prosecutor will more likely make the deal if you have a clean driving record and the officer didnt already give you a break at the time of the offence and reduce your speed on the ticket he wrote.

Any conviction can affect your insurance rates IF your insurance company finds out. If you've been with the same company for a long time and you've been clean then I doubt they would check your drivers abstract. But if you were to switch companies, expect they will ask you and verify by checking your drivers abstract. Best bet is to call your insurance company and find out what their policy is on the matter, without identifying yourself.

[mugen_ferio]

I've never dealt with x-copper, but a Chinese company that does the same thing. And from what I've read in the above posts, seems like the company I went to charged less. I was caught 65 in a 40 (although the cop said i was going 70). They got rid of the 3 dermit points and the total cost was $200. All the fines were payed by the company as well, so $200 was the amount I payed for everything. My dad also used them for a similar situation and they also got rid of the dermit points, pm me if you're interested.

[328Toronto]

thanks everyone for the informative feedback ... looks like I will be using Xcopper even though I could fight it myself with the same results. my concern is the time I spend at court etc and the lost income that comes as a consequence ... in the end the the lost income would be close to what Xcopper will cost me .. so I might as well let the experts deal with it ... LOL