Online Traffic School
There are many types of different traffic schools and driver improvement programs in Virginia that may be utilized for your traffic or misdemeanor case. In this article, we’ll talk about online traffic schools and whether or not it’s a good option for you to pursue.
What is Online Traffic School?
Online traffic schools in Virginia generally consist of eight hours of educational material that you must go through online, and then there is a short quiz at the end. Once you finish the quiz, the online traffic school will generate a certificate that they will mail to you, or you can usually pay extra to have them FedEx or UPS it sooner. The schools range in price about $30 up to about $50.
Depending on your age in Virginia, you may not be allowed to take an online traffic school. The Virginia DMV says that drivers under 20 years old cannot do online traffic school in Virginia. Thus, if you are a teenager and you need to do traffic school, you would have to do an in-person school. But if you’re 20 years old or older then you would be eligible by DMV’s rules to do an online traffic.
What did the court require?
Different courts, though, can order different schools that you might have to do. If you’re ordered to go through traffic school or a driver improvement clinic by the court, you need to double check the requirements that the court imposed to see if there’s a specific school you need to do or if the court has required you to go to an in-person school.
The courts around Fredericksburg, Stafford, Spotsylvania, and King George, normally allow online traffic school without a problem. However, in Fredericksburg City, for instance, there are some cases where the judge will order an actual in-person school called the Perceptive Driving Seminar. That school is also utilized by the judge in Spotsylvania from time to time. There’s another in person school called the Reckless Aggressive Driver Education Program that is also utilized by some of the local judges in the Fredericksburg area. As you can see, even in one relatively small geographic area there’s a number of traffic schools and driver improvement programs that are being utilized, and that’s why it’s critical to check any requirements imposed on you to see what exact school you need to attend for your case.
Why use an online traffic school?
If you are allowed to go to an online traffic school, the benefit is that you can take the eight hours of education at your own pace. Most of the schools break it up into chapters, then you can spend an hour here and there throughout a week or a couple of weeks as your schedule permits and you can do the instructional portion a lot easier than spending an entire day at once doing it. Then you would still need to take the little quiz at the end. Typically that has to be done in person if you are a Virginia licensed driver.
If you contrast that with an in-person school, you have to take basically spend the entire day at the class, and you get the certificate at the end. It can be a little more convenient if you have a day to spare because you just knock it out in one day. But with the online one you can split it up over time so it fits into a busier schedule a little bit easier.
If you need to figure out the requirements for your case, definitely give my office a call, and we can see if we can direct you to the right place. But most importantly, call me before you go to court so I can help advise you whether or not traffic school is even an option for your case.
Photo by:Stéfan
