Does anything make a New York traffic ticket defective?

Receiving a New York traffic ticket is a drag under any circumstances, but it may create serious problems for you if you drive for a living or already have existing points on your driver’s license. However, a traffic ticket has to contain certain elements to hold up in court. If your ticket is missing any of these key elements, it may result in the court dismissing it.

According to the New York City Department of Finance, a traffic court may consider your traffic ticket to be defective if it is missing certain components, or if some of the information contained therein is illegible. Here are some of the elements every New York traffic ticket must contain.

Vehicle and registration information

Your traffic ticket needs to list your license plate number, the type of plate it has and your car’s make, model and body type. It also needs to list the state where you registered your vehicle.

An explanation of what occurred

Your traffic ticket also must contain a general statement about the violation the law enforcement official says you committed. It also has to cite the exact law that you violated alongside a “plain English” description of the offense.

Information about when and where you got the ticket

Your ticket also must list the time of day the law enforcement official issued it and, in some cases, where you received it. Authorities do not have to list where they issued the ticket if the violation was a “status” or “equipment” violation.

Certain types of traffic tickets may need to contain additional information. If your traffic ticket lacks any of the above-named information, it may be worth raising the matter in court.