Lost Traffic Ticket in Utah

Most drivers must contact the presiding traffic court for details about a lost traffic ticket, but some areas offer an online traffic ticket search.

Regardless of your method, be sure to find out your ticket fine, payment deadline, acceptable payment method, court appearance details (if applicable), and other information about your UT traffic ticket.

Traffic Ticket Search in Utah

Search a Lost Traffic Ticket Online

Currently, Utah doesn't have a statewide online system to search for a lost traffic ticket; however, some cities and counties—especially the larger ones—do have an online search option. For example, if you received your ticket in Salt Lake City, you can search for it online.

Check the website for the city or county in which you received the citation and see if it has an online traffic ticket search portal.

NOTE: Make sure the information you receive is sufficient enough to decide how you want to respond to your UT traffic ticket.

Contact Presiding Traffic Court

Your presiding traffic court is the court that handles traffic tickets in the district in which you received the citation.

Depending on where you received the ticket and the type of law enforcement officer who issued it, your court might be on a city or county level. (Typically, only officers from the municipal police departments, county sheriff's offices, and the Utah Highway Patrol (UTP) can issue traffic tickets.)

Refer to the state's list of links to cities and counties to find contact information for the presiding court in the area you were ticketed and contact a clerk in the court for information about your UT traffic ticket.

Utah Highway Patrol

Even if an officer from the UHP issues your citation, you'll still deal with the presiding court; however, the UHP can provide information about your lost traffic ticket. There is no central database of citation information, but you can contact the UHP office in the area you received the citation to gather the details.

Utah Traffic Ticket Details

No matter how you retrieve your lost traffic ticket information, there are certain details you must have to respond to your UT traffic ticket by the deadline and avoid additional penalties.

First, find out whether your violation requires a court appearance. Some violations carry mandatory court appearances, meaning you can't just plead “guilty" and pay your fine or plead “not guilty" and schedule a hearing. You must first appear in court. If you're required in court, ask for the court's location and the date and time you must appear. You might also consider consulting a traffic ticket attorney, as the violations requiring court appearances usually are serious ones.

Once you have that information, ask the clerk for the following details:

  • Your UT traffic ticket details. Find out:
    • Your specific violation. Again, this could help you determine if a traffic ticket attorney would be beneficial.
    • Your citation number. This will help you if you're eligible to pay online or by mail.
    • The names of the officer and his or her law enforcement agency. Most often, this is helpful if you choose to plead "not guilty" and challenge your ticket in court.
  • The traffic ticket fine information.
    • Your traffic ticket fine.
    • Any applicable surcharges or other fees.
    • Payment options and methods your court accepts, or for which you're eligible.
  • Your deadline to respond.
    • This means the date by which you must either plead "guilty" and pay or plead "not guilty" and schedule a hearing.

Respond to UT Traffic Ticket

When you “respond" to your traffic ticket, you either enter a plea of "guilty" and pay your fine or "not guilty" and schedule a court date to challenge your violation.

There are pros and cons to both options, and we explain these and the processes in our Pay a Traffic Ticket and Fight a Traffic Ticket sections.

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