Lost Traffic Ticket in New Jersey

Online Traffic Ticket Search

You can use NJMCdirect, the state’s online payment system, if you have your license plate number and the:

• Court identification number.
• Ticket prefix number.
• Ticket number.

If you’ve misplaced your ticket, it’s unlikely you have these numbers recorded somewhere; however, the state does offer this online option for traffic ticket and time payment option searches.

Determine Where You Got Your NJ Traffic Ticket

The MVC only has the capability to look up traffic tickets that are already on a driver’s record. For current traffic ticket information, you must contact the municipal court for the area in which you received the ticket.

For some, this might involve a process of elimination. For example, if you can’t remember the exact county in which you were ticketed, you might be able to narrow the area down to two or three counties. Once you do that, you can begin contacting those municipal courts.

Visit the County Website

The New Jersey Courts website provides addresses and telephone numbers for each local courthouse in the state. Use this information to contact the appropriate municipal court.

Be prepared to provide some basic information―such as your full name, driver’s license number, and license plate number―and don’t forget to ask the clerk for the:

• Total traffic ticket fines and any related surcharges.
• Court identification, ticket prefix, and ticket numbers, in case you want to pay online.
• Complaint number, in case you want to pay by mail.
• Court date, so you’ll know how much time you have to plead guilty and pay or plead not guilty and set up a hearing date.

NOTE: Some violations require court appearances. Ask the clerk at your municipal court whether your ticket indicates you must appear in court.

Determine How You Will Plead

You can handle your NJ traffic ticket in one of two ways:

• Plead guilty and pay the fine. This also means taking on any related penalties, and possibly experiencing an increase in auto insurance rates.
• Plead not guilty and fight the ticket in court.

NOTE: Regardless of how you plan to plead, some violations require court appearances.

We outline each option in our Paying Your Traffic Ticket and Fighting Your Traffic Ticket sections.