Vermont Traffic Laws: Points, Tickets, License Suspension and DUI

Yes. Vermont assigns demerit points for moving-violation convictions (not parking, equipment, size, or weight violations). When a driver reaches at least 10 points in a two-year period, the DMV Commissioner suspends the license after at least 10 days' notice (with a hearing on request to verify the records): 10 days for 10 points, 30 days for 15 points, 90 days for 20 points, and 30 more days for each additional 5 points. The DMV can also suspend habitual offenders and charges a reinstatement fee after every suspension.

Speeding (state speed zones and local limits): less than 10 mph over = 2 points; more than 10 mph over = 3 points; more than 20 mph over = 5 points; more than 30 mph over = 8 points. Two additional points are assessed if the violation caused a crash that was the driver's fault.

Suspension is triggered by points accumulated within a two-year period.

The statutes read do not provide a traffic school that dismisses tickets or removes points. However, a Superior Court judge or Judicial Bureau hearing officer may waive points for a moving violation in the interests of justice if the driver had no points in the past five years and no more than three points in the past 10 years, the violation carries no more than three points, it was not in a commercial vehicle, and it caused no injury or property damage.

Traffic tickets (civil violation complaints) go to the Vermont Judicial Bureau. Pay online on the Vermont Judiciary Public Portal: first try "Make Payments" (search by citation number, name or driver's license number); if the ticket is not yet in the system, use "Prepay Fees Online". Credit card payments carry a 2.39% convenience fee. Deliver your plea and fine within 21 days to avoid extra fees. You can also pay by phone (802-652-1900), by mail to the Vermont Judicial Bureau, PO Box 607, White River Junction, VT 05001 (check or money order, complaint number on the payment), or in person at 55 Railroad Row, White River Junction. Parking tickets go to the issuing municipality.

Check your license status on myDMV. To reinstate, meet every requirement listed on your reinstatement notice (which can include filing an SR-22, retaking the knowledge and skills tests, satisfying court requirements, medical clearance, court-ordered alcohol courses and paying reinstatement fees), and do not drive until DMV sends written notice of reinstatement. The Driver Control reinstatement fee can be paid online, by mail to Vermont DMV, 120 State Street, Montpelier, VT 05603-0001, Attn: Driver Control, or in person in Montpelier; no reinstatement fee is due if the only reason for the suspension is missing financial responsibility insurance. Court fines are paid to the court, not DMV.

Civil traffic violations are handled by the Judicial Bureau, a statewide court. A driver who admits the violation or pleads no contest waives a hearing and pays the waiver penalty shown on the front of the civil violation complaint (plus any seat belt fees). A driver who denies the violation gets a hearing, where the issuing officer acts as prosecutor and the judge decides the outcome and fine. Extensions of time to pay may be requested.

Grounds include accumulating 10 or more points in two years (10 days and up), DUI convictions (90 days for a first conviction), and refusing or failing a DUI test (civil suspension). Habitual offenders may also be suspended. After any suspension, the DMV charges a reinstatement fee, and DUI-related suspensions continue until the person meets the requirements of 23 V.S.A. § 1209a.

0.08 for drivers generally; 0.04 for commercial vehicle drivers; 0.02 for school bus drivers.

A first DUI may be punished by a fine of up to $750, up to two years in prison, or both. The court may order an alcohol assessment screening before sentencing. The DMV suspends the license for 90 days (one year if the crash caused a death or serious bodily injury to someone else) and until the person completes the requirements of § 1209a; during the suspension, an eligible person may drive with an ignition interlock restricted license (RDL) or certificate.

If a person refuses a test, the Commissioner suspends the license for six months (and until § 1209a requirements are met) based on the officer's affidavit; failing a test brings a 90-day suspension. A second suspension under this civil process is 18 months, and a third or later is for life. In each case an eligible person may drive with an ignition interlock RDL or certificate. Refusing a test is also a crime for a person with a prior DUI conviction or after a crash causing serious injury or death.

Twenty years. A second offense is one within 20 years of a prior DUI conviction (fine up to $1,500 and/or up to two years, with at least 60 consecutive hours in jail or 80 hours of community service). Third and later offenses require at least one prior within the last 20 years.

During DUI-related suspensions (criminal or civil, including lifetime suspensions), an eligible person may drive under an ignition interlock restricted driver's license (RDL) or ignition interlock certificate issued under 23 V.S.A. § 1213.

Drivers may not use a handheld portable electronic device while driving a moving vehicle, or on a public highway even while stopped in traffic or at a light. Hands-free use is allowed, as is activating hands-free use on a securely mounted device, emergency communication with police or emergency services, and mounted navigation. Fines (civil): $100-$200 for a first violation and $250-$500 for a second within two years; in certain designated areas, fines are higher ($200-$400 and $500-$1,000) and 4 points (first) or 5 points (repeat) are assessed.

Vermont makes any offense punishable by more than 2 years in prison a felony. Under that rule, DUI is a felony in these cases: a 3rd offense (two prior DUI convictions, at least one within the last 20 years), punishable by up to 5 years and a $2,500 fine, with at least 96 consecutive hours that must be served; a 4th or later offense, up to 10 years and $5,000, with at least 192 hours served; DUI causing serious bodily injury to someone other than the driver, up to 15 years; and DUI causing death, 1 to 15 years, with at least 5 years generally required if the driver has two or more prior DUI convictions.

On the criminal record, a court must seal a 'qualifying DUI misdemeanor' when at least 10 years have passed since the person completed the sentence, restitution and surcharges are paid, and the prosecutor does not show that sealing would be against the interests of justice. Sealing is not available to commercial driver's license holders for offenses committed in a motor vehicle. On the DMV side, Vermont DMV says there is no statute of limitations on driver suspensions, and Vermont law does not distinguish between recent and historic impaired-driving offenses when it comes to reinstatement requirements.

Legal and used. Vermont's State Highway Safety Office lists checkpoints among its impaired-driving countermeasures. It explains that checkpoints let police briefly stop vehicles at specific, highly visible locations (all drivers or a set portion) to see if the driver is impaired, and breath tests may be given if police suspect intoxication.