If you are charged with a DUI, then you may be forced to deal with vehicle sanctions. These are punishments that will have to do with the car that you were driving at the time of your arrest. Depending on which state you are in, the vehicle sanctions can be different. In almost all 50 states, license revocation is a common penalty for a DUI. Unfortunately, many drivers still get our on the road without their license and hope that they won’t get caught again.
Because they still have access to a car, drivers tend to disobey the command to refrain from driving. In fact, studies show that about 32% of all suspended second-time DUI offenders and about 61% of all third-time offender receive violations and crash citations while there licenses are suspended form a previous DUI.
Vehicle sanctions can help to enforce the revoked license laws. One of the most common vehicle sanctions is vehicle impoundment. When a person is arrested, the law enforcement will need to do something with the vehicle that was being driven. In most cases, the police will contact a tow truck and have the car taken to a location where it will be impounded. The offender will later be billed for the cost of the tow truck.
Fees for the towing and impoundment of a car can usually amount of about $1,000. You may even need to pay an additional fee in order to recover your car. If you believe that your car was impounded falsely, then you have the right to appeal. In some cases, the police will require that the car remain impounded until further notice. If you are not successful in appealing this ruling, then you may be able to pay the costs of impoundment or provide significant evidence and documents to prove that you have the right to retrieve your vehicle.
The Transportation Equity Act of the 21st Century made vehicle impoundment a popular choice of punishment for DUI offenders because it hardly costs the department anything. Studies show that vehicle impoundment does often reduce the number of subsequent violations committed by offenders. Sometimes, police will require that an offender complete a safe driver’s course or a DUI course before he or she is allowed to retrieve the vehicle from impoundment.
In addition to impoundment, some authorities may force a suspect to deal with vehicle registration suspension. This is a punishment that is usually reserved for low-level offenses because the car will remain in the offender’s possession. Instead, it will no longer be a registered vehicle, and therefore cannot be driven until a time-limit is up and the driver has the right to re-register the vehicle. This is a DMV penalty, and normally the vehicle can be registered again after a waiting period if the driver is willing to pay a fee.
In some cases, the police may also determine that it is best to confiscate a vehicle. This penalty is often used for repeat DUI offenders. In a confiscation, the individual will have to go through the courts in order to get the car back. Most of the time, the vehicle will eventually be restored to the offender but it may cost a significant amount of money and the police will often tack on fines and fees to teach the offender a lesson.
In some states the authorities will also enforce vehicle immobilization, This is when the vehicle is not permitted for use, but it is stored at the individual’s house. Sometimes, immobilization means that the authorities will put a car boot, wheel clamp, or another restraining object on the car for the duration of the immobilization. If you have been accused of DUI and are currently dealing with vehicle sanctions then talk to a local DUI attorney for assistance today!