This is a DMV online approved driving course for mature drivers over 55 years of age. Check with your insurance company about a discount for taking this course. Not all insurance companies will give discounts but most, if not all, major insurance companies will give some discount which should at least cover the cost of the course.
Additionally, you get a refresher course as a reminder of the DMV rules of the road as well as keeping yourself updated on any new or changed rules.
Geico gives a 10-15% discount and receives a notice automatically from our online course partner, Improv, when you've completed the course. With Geico you don't even need to inform the insurance company that you've taken the course.
This Improv version of a DMV approved Traffic Violator School (TVS) Course includes short modules and a multiple choice exit quiz. It enables eligible California drivers to prevent a traffic ticket from adding a point to their public driving record. You still pay the full fine, but completing an approved course prevents the conviction from showing up when insurers check your record. The conviction stays on a confidential DMV record that insurers and the general public cannot see, and the point never counts toward a negligent-operator suspension.
A common misconception is that traffic school erases your ticket. It does not. The court still enters a conviction, and you still pay the full bail amount for the offense. What changes is visibility: the DMV marks the conviction as confidential so it does not appear on your public driving record and no violation point is assessed against you.That hidden point means your insurance company won’t see the violation during routine record checks, which is how traffic school prevents rate increases. The confidential record still exists, though. Law enforcement and courts can access it, and it factors into future traffic school eligibility decisions. Think of it as a one-time pass rather than a clean slate.
Eligibility Requirements
Not every ticket qualifies. California Rules of Court, Rule 4.104, sets statewide eligibility criteria that court clerks apply when you request traffic school.To be eligible, you need all of the following:
- Valid California license: You must hold a current, valid California driver’s license. Out-of-state license holders are not eligible, even if cited while driving in California. If your citation was written with an out-of-state license but you actually do hold a valid California license, you can ask a judge to amend the citation to correct the record.
- Infraction-level moving violation: The ticket must be for an infraction under the Vehicle Code’s rules-of-the-road or equipment provisions. Misdemeanors do not qualify through the standard clerk process.
- No alcohol or drug connection: Any violation related to alcohol or drug use or possession is ineligible.3
- Speed not more than 25 mph over the limit: If you were cited for speeding, the alleged speed must be 25 mph over the limit or less. At 26 mph over, you are ineligible.2
- No outstanding failure to appear: If you have an unresolved failure-to-appear on the same citation, you must clear it and pay any associated fine before becoming eligible.
- Not in a commercial vehicle: The violation cannot have occurred while you were driving a commercial vehicle.
The 18-Month Rule
You can use traffic school to mask only one violation in any 18-month window. The clock runs from the date of the previous violation to the date of the new one, not from when you finished the earlier course.
Judicial Discretion
The criteria above apply to what a court clerk can approve without a judge’s involvement. A judicial officer has broader discretion and can grant traffic school in cases that fall outside those rules, including for some misdemeanors. This is not guaranteed, but if the clerk denies your request, asking to see a judge is worth the effort in borderline situations.
Special Rules for Commercial License Holders
Drivers with a Class A, Class B, or commercial Class C license face different rules. You can attend traffic school only if you were driving a non-commercial vehicle at the time of the violation.If you were behind the wheel of a commercial vehicle, traffic school is off the table entirely.
Even when you do qualify, the benefit is narrower than what non-commercial drivers receive. The conviction will not add a point to your DMV record, but it will not be held confidential either. Your record will still show the conviction, and the DMV must disclose it to insurers and for federal reporting purposes.After completing the course, commercial license holders should contact the DMV Driver Safety Unit at (916) 657-6452 to confirm that no point was assessed.
Deadlines and Extensions
When the court approves your traffic school request, it assigns a due date by which you must finish the course. This is not optional or soft. Courts typically grant around 60 to 90 days to complete traffic school, though the exact timeframe depends on your court. Check the paperwork or your court’s online portal for your specific deadline.
If you realize you will not finish in time, most courts allow you to request one extension, usually adding 60 days to your original due date. In many counties you can submit this request online through the court’s traffic services portal.You need to make the request before your current deadline expires. Not every case qualifies for an extension, and you will not see the option if you are ineligible.
Do not treat the deadline casually. Missing it triggers a cascade of consequences that makes the original ticket look minor by comparison. Meanwhile, because you did not complete the course, the conviction goes on your public driving record with the point fully visible, which is exactly the outcome you were trying to avoid. Getting back on track after a missed deadline usually means appearing in court, paying the additional penalties, and losing the traffic school option entirely. The takeaway: calendar the deadline the day you receive it.
Give the process a few weeks to work through the system. After that, you can pull your driving record from the DMV to confirm the conviction is masked. If anything looks wrong, contact the court first to verify they received your completion, then follow up with the DMV. Commercial license holders have an extra step: because their convictions remain visible, they should call the DMV Driver Safety Unit directly to confirm no point was assessed.
After Completion: Court and DMV Notification
Once you pass the course, Improv electronically transmits your completion certificate to the court that issued your citation. You should not need to file anything yourself, but keep your completion certificate in case something goes wrong in transmission.
Give the process a few weeks to work through the system. After that, you can pull your driving record from the DMV to confirm the conviction is masked. If anything looks wrong, contact the court first to verify they received your completion, then follow up with the DMV. Commercial license holders have an extra step: because their convictions remain visible, they should call the DMV Driver Safety Unit directly to confirm no point was assessed.