There are three types of Traffic Tickets. They’re referred to as Part I & Part III
These are what is referred to as minor offences. They usually carry a set fine so if your traffic ticket has a fine amount on it, it’s a Part I.
Another feature for Part I offences is that the penalty is limited to $1000. You also can’t be suspended by a court for the offence if suspension was one of the possible sentencing outcomes.
Don’t let the minor nature fool you. There are some Part I offences which carry hidden administrative suspensions. Novice driver violations carry suspensions issued by the Ministry of Transportation and not a court. Paying these types of fines or pleading guilty to them means after you think the dust has settled, you get a suspension notice in the mail.
In addition, paying the ticket is the equivalent to pleading guilty to the charge. That means you could be assessed demerit points, your insurance could go up, & worse. Visit the FAQs page (and some of our others while you’re at it) to see some of the negative effects of paying a ticket.
Part III offences are the more serious of the bunch. These cases don’t have a fine on the ticket. It’s just a summons with a court date. You can’t just pay it.
Some of the offences prosecuted under Part III proceedings are driving under suspension, Operate motor vehicle without insurance, Stunt driving, & Racing. There are way too many to list but those are a few of the big ones.
Drive under suspension for example carries a possible jail sentence, a minimum Ministry imposed 6 month suspension & a hefty minimum fine of $1,000. The majority of offences under Part III are classified as strict liability.
Part III offences should not be taken lightly. The fines can be astronomical and some of the other penalties associated with Part III offences can include, jail, license suspension, probation, and also subject to other orders.
