West Virginia Driving Law

Information on West Virginia driving law and West Virginia traffic laws...

West Virginia Point System

The Division of Motor Vehicles has a point system to identify and control problem drivers. The Division maintains a continuing record of your driving conduct from the date of your first conviction for a moving violation of West Virginia driving law.

Your record will show the date, nature of the violation of West Virginia traffic laws and the court in which you were convicted.

Points have been assigned to various in-state and out-of-state moving traffic violations depending on the seriousness of the violation.

Repeated convictions for violations of West Virginia driving law may build a point record leading to suspension of your driving privilege. Points remain on your driving record for two years from the conviction date.

When you have six points or more on your record, the Division will send you a letter of caution, urging more careful driving and obedience of West Virginia traffic laws. When you accumulate 12 points on your record, your driver’s license is subject to suspension.

In accordance with West Virginia driving law, you may have three points deducted from your record by completing an eight-hour defensive driving course taught throughout the state by the West Virginia Safety Council.

The defensive driving course can only be taken to remove three points if an individual has 11 points or less and no outstanding tickets that would place them over the 12 point limit. Motorists are only eligible for this point reduction once every two years.

Under West Virginia driving law, if you have accumulated 12 or more points prior to taking the defensive driving course, the Division of Motor Vehicles will not remove points from your record.

West Virginia Driving Law Point Scale

Fleeing from an officer 8
Speeding in a school zone 6
Passing a stopped school bus 6
Reckless driving 6
Hit and run (property damage only) 6
Speeding 15 m.p.h. or more above the speed limit 5
Leaving the scene of an accident (property damage) 4
Speeding 10 m.p.h. to 14 m.p.h. over the speed limit 3
Passing violations 3
Failure to yield right of way 3
Failure to obey traffic light 3
Failure to obey stop sign 3
Driving left of center 3
Driving too fast for conditions 3
Failure to maintain control of vehicle 3
Hazardous driving 3
Driving the wrong way on a one way street 3
Littering 3
Improper lane change 3
Failure to keep in proper lane 3
Failure to yield to an emergency vehicle 3
Driving on wrong side of road 3
Speeding 5 m.p.h. to 9 m.p.h. over the speed limit 2
Following too closely 2
More than 3 in the front seat 2
Driving on the wrong side of the road 2
Improper turning 2
Improper backing 2
Improper signal or no signal 2
Failure to follow instructions of a police officer 2
All other moving violations 2

West Virginia Driving Law Point System

DMV’s Point System promotes highway safety and enables the agency to monitor and correct the driving habits of West Virginia motorists.

Points are assessed for violations of West Virginia driving law according to the severity of the offense. Motorists who accumulate 6 to 8 points against their license receive a warning letter urging them to exercise more caution and obey all West Virginia driving laws. Continued unlawful driving can lead to license suspension.

In accordance with West Virginia driving law, points for a given infraction of West Virginia traffic laws remain on a driver’s record for two years after the date of the driver’s conviction for that infraction; the infraction itself remains on a driver’s record for seven years.

Points Accumulated - Suspension Time

12-13 - 30 Days
14-15 - 45 Days
16-17 - 60 Days
18-19 - 90 Days

20+ points: License is suspended until accumulated points are reduced to 11 or less.

Points are assessed according to the severity of the West Virginia traffic laws offense.

8 Points:

Fleeing a police officer

6 Points:

Hit and Run (with property damage);
Passing a stopped school bus
Speeding in a school zone
Reckless driving

5 Points:

Speeding 15 m.p.h. or more above posted limit

4 points:

Leaving the scene of an accident (with property damage)

3 Points:

Speeding 10 to 14 m.p.h. above posted limit
Driving wrong way on a one-way street
Failure to maintain control of vehicle
Driving too fast for conditions
All varieties of failure to yield
Failure to obey traffic light
Failure to obey stop sign
Driving left of center
Hazardous driving
Passing violations
Littering

2 Points:

Improper turn
Improper backing
Following too closely
Improper lane change
Failure to stay in proper lane
Driving on wrong side of road
Improper signal/failure to signal
More than three passengers in front seat
Failure to yield to an emergency vehicle
Failure to follow police officer’s instructions
Speeding 5 to 9 m.p.h. above posted limit
All other moving violations not listed here

Under West Virginia driving law, license suspensions run consecutively; points accumulated by drivers already under suspension will result in an additional license suspension, to begin after the original suspension period ends.

Points are assessed for all traffic violations committed anywhere in the US or Canada. Under West Virginia driving law, drivers convicted of multiple offenses arising out of the same incident will be assessed only the points appropriate to the most serious offense.

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