If you commute to and from work on your car on a daily basis, the mere thought of getting your driver’s license suspended or revoked can make you faint. Unfortunately, many motorists in Los Angeles and all across California play with fire by not knowing in which situations the California Department of Motor Vehicles (DMV) has the right to suspend or revoke your driver’s license.
Our Los Angeles auto accident lawyer at Compass Law Group, P.C., says that there can be multiple reasons why the DMV may suspend or revoke your privilege to operate a vehicle. For those of who do not know what it means to get your driver’s license suspended or revoked in California, our experienced car accident attorney in Los Angeles explains that if your driver’s license is suspended or revoked, you will not be allowed to lawfully operate your car or any other vehicle until the suspension or revocation period ends.
“But when does the DMV can suspend or revoke my driver’s license in California?” you may be wondering. There are at least 8 reasons why your privilege to drive a vehicle can be suspended or revoked:
- You do not carry auto insurance coverage. Under California law, it is a mandatory requirement for all motorists to have valid car insurance coverage. Otherwise, if the DMV finds out what you do not have insurance, it will suspend your driver’s license for at least one year.
- You were driving under the influence of alcohol or drugs. If a police officer arrests you for DUI in Los Angeles or elsewhere in California, you will be issued an Order of Suspension, which will allow you to operate a vehicle for the next 30 days but may ultimately result in a suspension or revocation of your license at the end of that period. The 30-day period exists to give the DMV an opportunity to investigate your particular case and either confirm or refute that you were operating a car while intoxicated. If the investigation confirms the DUI, your driver’s license will remain suspended for four months (if that’s your first DUI conviction) or 12 months (if that’s the second or subsequent DUI conviction on your criminal record within 10 years).
- Refusal to submit required chemical testing to assess the presence of alcohol or drugs in your system. If you think that you can avoid getting your driver’s license suspended or revoked by refusing a required chemical test, think again. “If that’s still your plan, your license will be suspended for at least one year,” warns our auto accident lawyer Los Angeles.
- Alcohol in your vehicle. If you are under 21 years old and there is alcohol in your vehicle, your driver’s license will be suspended for one year, unless the bottle of alcohol is full, sealed, and was not opened.
- There are way too many points on your driving record. Getting more points on your credit card is definitely a good thing, but not so much when you accumulate points on your driving record. Your driver’s license will be suspended for six months if you have “scored” four points in 12 months, 6 points in 24 months, or 8 points in 36 months.
- Failure to appear in court or pay a traffic ticket. Believe it or not, something as harmless as failure to appear in court and failure to pay a traffic ticket can result in a suspension of your driver’s license up until you appear in court or pay a fine after receiving a traffic ticket.
- Failure to make child support payments. The DMV works in cooperation with the Department of Child Support Services (DCSS), which provides the DMV with records of motorists who fail to pay child support on time and in full.
- Physical or mental condition. If you have been diagnosed with a physical or mental condition that negatively affects your ability to operate a vehicle, your driver’s license will automatically be revoked or suspended.
More often than not, regardless of why your driver’s license was revoked or suspended in California, you will need a Los Angeles auto accident attorney by your side to protect your rights and contest the suspension or revocation of your license in a timely manner. In fact, you have a right to request a hearing within only 10 days of receiving notice of the suspension or revocation.
