Michigan Driver Responsibility Fees and Drunk Driving

Under Michigan law, drivers often face additional monetary fees if he or she is convicted of certain driving related offenses or accumulates too many points on his or her Michigan driving record.

These “Driver Responsibility Fees” are additional fees which are paid to the State of Michigan and are in addition to any other sanction imposed by the judge or governing court.  A judge does not have control over these fees and the fees are determined directly by the Michigan Secretary of State.
Some of the qualifying offenses which carry a “Responsibility Fee” for are as follows: Operating While Intoxicated ($1,000.00), Operating While Impaired ($500.00), Driving While License Suspended ($500.00), No Proof of Insurance ($200.00), Drove With Expired License ($150.00), Drove Without Proper Endorsement ($150.00).  A person convicted of these listed “qualifying offenses” must pay the stated amount for TWO consecutive years.

The Driver Responsibility Fees also apply to drivers who accumulate 7 or more qualifying points on his or her driving record.  The fees begin at $100.00 for 7 points and increase by $50.00 for each additional point on the driver’s record.  Thus, 8 points would be $150.00, 9 points would be $200.00, and so on.  These fees will be continued until the driver is below 7 points on his or her driving record.  Most moving violations carry points and some of the most common violations are Speeding, Careless Driving, Fail to Yield, Improper Turn, Disobeying Red Light or Traffic Signal, etc.

If a person does not comply with the Driver Responsibility Fees, then that person faces the likely possibility that his or her driving privileges will be suspended by the State of Michigan.  Therefore, it is important to take care of any Driver Responsibility Fees or avoid a conviction which would result in the imposition of such fees.