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Lost Traffic Ticket in Georgia
Determine Where You Got Your GA Traffic Ticket
It’s important to remember where you received the traffic ticket, because only the court handling the ticket can perform the search. The DDS doesn’t have the ability to search lost traffic tickets. Even narrowing the location down to a county or two can help you during your search.
Five different courts handle traffic tickets. They include municipal, magistrate, probate, juvenile, and state courts.
Some tips to remember when narrowing down the location and court include:
- You won’t go through a juvenile court unless you’re a juvenile.
- Georgia has more municipal courts than they have any other type of court, and these courts handle most traffic tickets.
- State courts typically (but not always) handle traffic ticket appeals.
Visit the County Website
Once you know (or at least have an idea of) which court is handling your traffic ticket, you can visit the court’s website to obtain contact information. Call or visit the court in person to retrieve your lost traffic citation information―you probably won’t have to provide more than your name and driver’s license number.
Because traffic tickets include a lot of important information, be sure to ask specifically about:
- Traffic ticket fines and court costs.
- The hearing date, or date by which you must respond to the ticket.
- Whether a court appearance is mandatory, per your violation.
- Acceptable payment options and methods.
Determine How You Will Plead
Drivers can plead to GA traffic tickets in one of two ways:
- Guilty or nolo contendere.
- Not guilty.
Unless the violation involves a serious crime or pushes your points over the limit to license suspension, pleading guilty or nolo contendere usually means paying the fine and closing the case; however, if you plead not guilty you have to fight your ticket in court.
Find out details about each option in our Paying Your Traffic Ticket and Fighting Your Traffic Ticket sections.
Pay Ticket
(Plead Guilty or Nolo Contendere)- Pay the fine.
- Accumulate driving record points (if applicable).
- Possibly experience higher auto insurance rates.
- Possibly attend court-ordered safety and education courses.
- Voluntarily attend driving course to offset points and get an auto insurance discount.
Learn more about
Paying your Traffic Ticket »Fight Ticket
(Plead Not Guilty)- Contest the ticket during a hearing.
- Work with a traffic ticket lawyer or represent yourself.
- Face no penalties if found not guilty.
- Appeal the guilty verdict (if applicable).
Learn more about
Fighting your Traffic Ticket »Other Topics in This Section
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