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SECTION     10   : LOSING YOUR DRIVING PRIVILEGES

        The Points System                 Safety Responsibility Law          pension period. A limited driving permit would
                                                                             allow you to only:
          The Department is required by law to sus-  The purpose of this law is to remove irre-    •  Drive to your place of employment;
        pend the Georgia license of an individual for an    sponsible drivers from Georgia highways and

        accumulation of points resulting from certain    to protect insured motorists from uninsured  •  Receive scheduled medical attention or ob-

        convictions. Points are assessed against Georgia    motorists. In the event you should fail to sat-  tain prescribed drugs;
        residents for out-of-state violations which would    isfy a claim for damage resulting from a motor       •  Attend classes at a college or school in which
        be assessed points if committed within Georgia.    vehicle crash, and a claim is filed against you     you are enrolled as a student;
        Georgia licenses will be suspended as follows:  under the Safety Responsibility Law, you will
                                          receive an order suspending your license.       •  Attend regularly scheduled sessions or meet-
           •  For any person who accumulates 15 or more
          points within 24 months;          To avoid the suspension, you may:     ings of support organizations for the treat-
                                             •  Have your insurance carrier file Form SR-21     ment of alcohol or other drugs;
           •  For any person under the age of 21 with a   with the DDS if you were covered by liability    •  Attend a driver education program or alco-

          conviction for any 4-point violation;
                                            insurance at the time of the crash; or   hol/drug assessment and treatment program;
           •  For any person under 18 years of age with

          an accumulation of 4 points within twelve     •  File either a general or a conditional release  •  Attend court, report to a probation office or
          months.                           that has been signed by the claimant (injured   officer, or perform community service;
                                            party in the crash) with the DDS; or     •  Transport unlicensed immediate family
          Points are accumulated on a person’s driving       •  Post security to cover the damages with the   members to work, medical care and to obtain
        record as a result of certain convictions. The   DDS, which may be a cashier’s check, certi-  prescriptions, and to school.
        adjacent chart lists these convictions and the   fied check, money order, real property bond
        number of points associated with each. The date   or surety bond, in addition to posting of fi-  The Department may also specify the places
        the violation occurred is used as the basis for   nancial responsibility, Form SR-22A.   you may travel to, specific routes of travel, times
        determining the 24-month period (or 12-month                         of travel, and indicate vehicles, or other restric-
        period for persons under age 18). When a license   Any security or bond posted with the Depart-  tions deemed necessary. Limited driving permits
        is suspended due to an accumulation of points,  ment   will be held for one year and thereafter  are not valid for driving a commercial vehicle.
        the point total is restored to zero.   until proof is furnished to the Department that   A limited driving permit will be revoked by
          In the case of a person age 18 up to 21, the  you have not been sued as a result of the crash.   the Department if you are convicted of violating
        suspension of the license for a single 4-point   You   are entitled to a hearing, if desired, and  any state law or local ordinance relating to the

        offense is determined by the date the convic-    if requested within ten (10) days of the receipt  movement of vehicles or if you are convicted
        tion occurred. A plea of nolo contendere is con-  of the order of suspension.   of violating any of the conditions or restric-
        sidered a conviction for purposes of imposing                        tions of your permit. In addition, a conviction
        suspensions that apply to persons under age 21.   Mandatory Revocations   will extend the underlying suspension of your
                                                                             driving privilege for an additional 6 months.
        Points Reduction                    Your driver’s license will be revoked in Geor-  Limited driving permits are not available for
          Licensed Georgia residents may request that     gia if any of the following occur:   convictions of the following offenses or in the



        DDS   reduce the number of points assessed                           following situations:
        against their Georgia driver’s license up to 7    •  You are declared a Habitual Violator based       •  Implied Consent refusal (may be available if
        points once every 5 years.          upon the third conviction of any combination   no prior DUI conviction within past 5 years);
          To qualify for a points reduction, you must   of these offenses within 5 years:
        successfully complete a certified 6-hour driver     »  Driving under the Influence (DUI);     •  No Insurance convictions;
        improvement (defensive driving) course   and   »  Homicide by vehicle;     •  Driving while license suspended convictions;
        present the original certificate o f c ompletion   »  Feticide by vehicle;
        to the DDS by mail or in person at one of our   »  Serious injury by vehicle;     •  Failure to pay super speeder fee;
        Customer Service Centers.           »  Hit and run or leaving the scene of a crash;     •  Failure to pay child support;
          If you request a points reduction by mail,   »  Racing;
        please mail the original driver improvement   »  Using a motor vehicle in fleeing or at-    •  Failure to appear in court or respond to a
        (defensive driving) certificate o f c ompletion   tempting to elude an officer;   citation;
        to the Georgia Department of Driver Services,   »  Reckless Stunt Driving     •  Medical revocation;
        P.O. Box 80447, Conyers, Georgia 30013. A list of   »  Operating a motor vehicle with a sus-
        certified driver improvement (defensive driv-  pended, canceled, or revoked registration;     •  Safety responsibility;
        ing) courses can be found at the following link:   »  Any felony in the commission of which a    •  Parent requested revocation;
        https://online.dds.ga.gov/ddsgeorgiagov/   motor vehicle is used; or
        locations/driver-improvement-schools. aspx.   •  Refusal to submit to a re-examination of driv-    •  DUI Drugs
                                            ing skills or knowledge of driving rules after       •  DUI convictions prior to age 21; and
        Points Avoidance                    receiving notice giving reasonable grounds



          A    defendant  may  successfully  complete  a   for such a request;     •  Refusal to weigh (CMV).




        certified   6-hour driver improvement (defensive                      A limited driving permit may be available


                                 of



        driving)   course after the issuance       a citation  •  If you have been declared incompetent or if   in the following situations, depending on your
        for a moving violation and prior to the court   there is sufficient evidence that you are un-  age and the number of convictions on your

        appearance,   or as ordered by the court. When   safe to drive, due to mental health or physical   driving record:






                                    is

        the    original  certificate  of  completion      pre-  disability or disease, or by alcohol or drug

        sented     the court, the court shall reduce the   addiction.           •  1st DUI (non-drugs);



             to



        fine assessed by 20 percent and no points shall   If you are declared a Habitual Violator, you may    •  2nd DUI conviction in 5 years;


        be    assessed  against  the  driver.  This  plea  may  be eligible for a Probationary License after serving




        be accepted by the court once every five years.   two years of the revocation period.     •  DUI ALS;
                                          Limited Driving Permits               •  Under 21 speeding violation but only if age
                                                                              18 or older, speeding was 24-33 mph over
                                                                              the posted speed limit, and approved by the
                                            In some situations, a limited driving permit     sentencing court judge;
                                          may be available for a fee of $25 during the sus-
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