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BMV > Suspension And Reinstatement > Habitual Traffic Violator Habitual Traffic Violator

Indiana law gives courts the authority to order the Bureau of Motor Vehicles to suspend a motorist’s driver license when he or she is found to have committed certain traffic violations. In most of these instances, the motorist may apply to have his or her driver's license reinstated.

By establishing an online myBMV account you gain access to your personal records and a number of services, including the ability to print your driver record, pay reinstatement fees online, and update your address and insurance information.

Indiana’s Habitual Traffic Violator law provides serious penalties for persons who have committed repeat traffic offenses over a ten year period. A habitual traffic violator faces a ten-year suspension, and is defined as any person who, within a ten-year period, is convicted of the following offenses:

Two major offenses resulting in injury or death, including:

  • Reckless homicide resulting from operating a motor vehicle;
  • Voluntary or involuntary manslaughter resulting from the operation of a motor vehicle;
  • A driver involved in an accident which results in death or injury who fails to stop at the scene of the accident and provide the required information and assistance;
  • Operating a motor vehicle while intoxicated, resulting in death;
  • Operating a motor vehicle with a blood-alcohol level of .08 percent or more resulting in death.

Three major offenses including:

  • Driving while intoxicated or with a blood-alcohol level of .08 percent or more;
  • Driving while suspended, when the suspension was the result of a criminal act involving a motor vehicle;
  • Operating a motor vehicle without ever having obtained a license to do so;
  • Reckless driving;
  • Criminal recklessness involving the operation of a motor vehicle;
  • Drag racing or engaging in a speed contest in violation of the law;
  • Leaving the scene of an accident or failing to make an accident report;
  • Any felony under the Indiana motor vehicle statutes or any felony in the commission of which a motor vehicle is used;
  • Any of the offenses listed in the first section.

The BMV will suspend a motorist’s operator license for five years if that person accumulates ten moving violations in a ten-year period, one of which is a major offense listed in the first two sections above. For example, a motorist with nine speeding tickets and one reckless driving conviction in a ten-year period will be subject to a five-year suspension as a habitual traffic violator.

Operating a vehicle while suspended as a habitual traffic violator is a felony. Indiana law requires that, upon receiving a conviction for operating a vehicle while suspended as a habitual traffic violator, the BMV must suspend the person’s driving privileges for life or as ordered by the court.

Still have questions? Contact the BMV

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