What Is the Ohio Point System for Traffic Violations?

Ohio traffic laws are designed to promote safety and accountability on the road. When drivers commit certain offenses, whether minor traffic mistakes or serious violations like DUI/OVI, the state tracks these incidents through a structured Ohio BMV point system. Understanding how this system affects your driving record is essential to avoiding long-term penalties and maintaining your driver’s license in good standing.

If you’re facing traffic charges or have questions about your driving record, the Dayton traffic tickets lawyers at Gounaris Abboud can help.

Contact us online or call (937) 222-1515 for a free consultation.

Understanding the Ohio BMV Point System

When you are convicted of a traffic violation in Ohio, the court clerk sends a certified abstract of your case to the Ohio Bureau of Motor Vehicles (BMV). The BMV then uses a predetermined schedule to assign a specific number of points to your driver’s license based on the severity of the offense.

Each violation, whether it’s speeding, reckless driving, or DUI/OVI, adds points to your driving record. The system allows Ohio to identify and penalize high-risk drivers while encouraging safe driving habits statewide.

How Many Points Can You Get on Your License in Ohio?

The number of points added to your driving record depends on the severity of the traffic violation. Minor infractions, such as speeding or failure to yield, usually result in 2 points, while more serious offenses, such as reckless driving, carry 4 points. The most severe moving violations, like DUI/OVI, hit-and-run, or fleeing from police, add six points to your record.

How Long Do Points Stay on Your Ohio License?

In Ohio, traffic violation points remain on your driving record permanently, but the Bureau of Motor Vehicles counts them toward a possible 2-year suspension from the date of the offense. For instance, points from a speeding ticket on October 1, 2022, no longer count after October 1, 2024.

If you accumulate 12 or more points within two years, your driver’s license is suspended for 6 months. To reinstate it, you must complete a remedial driving course, pass the driving test, and meet all Ohio BMV reinstatement requirements.

How DUI/OVI Affects Your Ohio Driving Record

A conviction for OVI (Operating a Vehicle Impaired) or DUI (Driving Under the Influence) is among the most serious traffic offenses in Ohio. An OVI conviction adds six points to your driving record, and you may face additional penalties such as:

• Jail time or probation
• Fines and Ohio court costs
• Mandatory alcohol or drug treatment
• Vehicle immobilization or ignition interlock devices
• Driver’s license suspension for months or years

If your driver’s license was already suspended for an OVI and you’re caught driving again, that’s another six-point violation, compounding your penalties.

Points for Various Moving Violations in Ohio

According to the Ohio Code, violation points include the following:

Ohio Considers Multiple Traffic Infractions as Minor Violations Resulting in Two Points

• Texting while driving
• Running a stop sign
• Running a traffic light
• Driving below the speed limit
• Failure to yield
• Following too closely
• Improper turn
• Speeding less than 25mph over the speed limit

Ohio assesses four points against a driver’s driving record for moving violations considered more serious or dangerous than those warranting two points.

Four-Point Violations

• Willful or wanton disregard for the safety of persons or property (reckless driving)
• Exceeding the speed limit by 30 miles per hour
• Operating a motor vehicle with an unlawful concentration of alcohol while under the age of 21

Six-Point Violations in Ohio

• Street racing
• Operating a vehicle under the influence of alcohol and/or drugs (OVI)
• Leaving the scene of an accident
• Driving under a suspended driver’s license
• Aggravated vehicular homicide, vehicular homicide, vehicular manslaughter, aggravated vehicular assault, or vehicular assault when the offense involves the operation of a vehicle, streetcar, or trackless trolley on a highway or street
• Willful fleeing or eluding of a law enforcement officer
• OVI conviction
• Operating a vehicle without the owner’s consent
• Using a motor vehicle to commit a felony

6-Point Warning Letter

If a driver accumulates six points on his or her license within a two-year period, the Ohio Bureau of Motor Vehicles (BMV) is required to issue a warning letter listing the violations and the corresponding points for each.

12-Point Suspension Letter

If you receive 12 or more points over two years, the BMV will suspend your license for six months. You will receive a letter listing your violations and the points assessed. The letter will also explain what you must do to reinstate your license.

Your requirements will include:

• Passing a remedial driving course
• Filing an affidavit proving you have auto insurance
• Paying a fee
• Retaking the driver’s license exam

You must wait until your suspension ends before taking these steps.

Can You Remove Penalty Points from Your Ohio Driving Record?

If you have between two and twelve points on your license, Ohio allows you to take a remedial driving course. If you pass, the Ohio BMV removes two points from your driving record.

You can take the course only once every 3 years and 5 times in your lifetime. Because of this time limit, the course can only remove two points in any two-year counting period. If you continue to accrue points after passing the course, you will have no options for preventing them from counting toward a suspension.

How to Reduce Points on Your License in Ohio

You have three options for preventing points from counting toward a suspension:

• Avoid traffic violations for more than two years, allowing old points to age out of the suspension period.
• Take the remedial driving instruction course, immediately removing two points.
• Fight traffic violations so the BMV cannot add the points to your driving record.

The third point is worth some elaboration. When a police officer issues a citation, you are entitled to have your day in court. The state has to prove you violated the motor vehicle code.

Unless the officer captured video of your vehicle, you can:

• Show that your actions did not violate traffic laws.
• Challenge the officer’s interpretation of the situation.
• Question the officer’s observations.

You may have additional defenses depending on the alleged violation.

How Can You Appeal a 12-Point License Suspension?

You have 20 days from the mailing of the suspension letter to file an appeal petition. You file the petition with your local municipal or county court. You will request either:

• Limited driving privileges due to hardship
• An opportunity to oppose the suspension

This petition initiates a lawsuit against the BMV.

What Is Required to Reinstate a Suspended Ohio Driver’s License?

To reinstate your license in Ohio, you must first wait out the suspension period. After six months, you can start working on meeting the requirements to get your license back.

To reinstate your license, you must:

• Pay a fee and submit an application.
• Pass an eight-hour adult remedial driving course.
• Buy three years of auto insurance and obtain an SR-22 declaration.
• Retake the written driver’s license examination.

If your license expires during the suspension, you might owe additional fees.