Red Light Cameras

Anyone ever gotten a ticket from one of those "red-light cameras"?? Or maybe you might know someone who has?

I heard a beep as I went through a yellow light this morning and I'm pretty sure it was the red-light camera. So now I'm going to wait for the ticket in the mail.

I've also heard that the offense is less against your insurance  because it wasn't a police officer pulling you over. I can't find the information on the internet and the state's website sucks. I live in Massachusetts if that helps anyone.

How would you fight a camera ticket??? *sigh*

in NC they outlawed them

it was because they were approved by the state legislature only on the condition that the revenue from them would go to local school districts

but the company that was managing the cameras in a couple of big cities (placement, operation and so forth) was keeping a higher percentage that originally agreed AND the city council wanted to use the money for road construction and not schools

so someone challenged a ticket on the basis that the city was violating the law by misappropriating the revenue and the court agreed

had the camera company agreed to take their 30% instead of insisting on 40% and had the city council agreed to allocate the money as directed by the statute then they'd still have the cameras

other than that - I don't know of anyone who successfully challenged a red light camera ticket on the basis of not deserving it

you might be able to challenge it if you can prove tha the yellow light is a shorter duration (and therefore deceptive) than the yellow lights at other intersections that don't have the cameras?

We have red light cameras here in the DC/MD area.  I have never gotten one personally, but I've witnessed other people get nabbed by them.  The cameras here flash brightly when you run a red light.  I don't think I've ever heard a beep.  As far as I know, red light tickets don't have any influence on your car insurance rates because there is no way for authorities to prove who was actually driving the car.  I'm not sure about fighting it either unless you argue that the camera malfunctioned but honestly arguing against a stationary camera with fixed sensors is a lot harder than arguing against a cop on the side of the road with a hand held radar gun with dozens of other cars zipping by.  If I got one, I would just pay the ticket.

We have those camera's here too...I believe they take a pic of the plate AND the person driving.  We also have speed vans that do the same and are under hot debate.  It has been challenged that it is not fair to be ticketed by a van and not a PO. 

We have one in particular by my house that is really a problem.  (Dayton, OH) Everyone knows that there's a red light camera there, so people drive really slow if the "don't walk" sign starts flashing or speeding to try to beat it.  Not safe at all...

I honestly don't think it's fair that it will get you if the light is yellow...sometimes you just can't stop (especially when it's snowing or raining really hard).  When my dad was taking me home after I had to go the hospital, he got a ticket from that light.  The whole reason was there was a large truck in front of us and he couldn't see the light turning yellow.  So, his bumper was still in the intersection when the light turned red.  Stupid...if your bumper is in the intersection at all, they ticket you. 

They do show the plate and driver here when the pic is taken, but I'm not sure how that affected my parents' insurance.

I hate going through that light.

Here in the UK we have cameras everywhere, and regularly get clocked by speed vans. However here anyway you would not get a ticket for going through an amber(yellow) light only red, amber is "prepare to" not "do" so if it was still definitely amber as you passed it, you should be OK.

Agree with annndjoe.  In California, if you enter the intersection while the light is yellow, you will not get ticketed.  If you enter the intersection after the light has already changed to red, you will be cited.  I think you should be okay.

At least here in MD they only take a pic of the licence plates. So you could argue that you were not the one driving.

We've gotten 2 of these tickets in the past.  Both times my husband was driving my car and since it was registered in my name the tickets were all in my name.  There were no points and no impact on our insurance. We got one in Delaware and the other in PA.  It takes a picture of the car going through the light and a close up shot of the license plate, there was no picture of the driver on the two we had.  Both tickets were $75 a piece.

It depends where you live.  We have one close to our house and its only a $25 ticket, much like a parking ticket.  It takes a picture of your license plate and the car in the intersection.  The money goes back to the town as revenue.

From what I hear, there's not much to fight, its there in the picture.  The one in our town is reviewed by police officers and they make the determination whether its a clear violation or not. 

I could be wrong, but here is what I've heard...at least about the ones in OUR area....  The reason it doesn't matter who was driving is because it falls under the same category as (for instance) a parking ticket.  Yes there is a fine, but it's not one of those tickets that puts points on your license and effects insurance. 

I'd say it would be hard to fight one of these tickets because it's hard to fight a parking ticket....you don't have to prove you weren't driving the car because it doesn't matter...it's considered a non-moving violation and won't count against your license.

Some might disagree, but I think these cameras are a great idea.  I've seen far too many accidents because people are constantly trying to run these lights.  And i'm not talking about sneaking through a yellow light.  I'm talking about blatantly running red lights.  Bottom line is it's dangerous and if we have the technology to stop it, then I say we should  :)

EDIT:  I just realized that I pretty much said the same thing as the two posters above me.  Oh well. 

In California, it does matter who's driving, because a red light violation is a moving (traffic) violation, not a parking violation.  Therefore, in some cities in California, the cameras take photos of both the license plate and also the interior of the vehicle, although sometimes those photos are rather blurry... So a driver in California can dispute the ticket by saying that he or she was not driving, effectively tattling on the person who was actually piloting the vehicle!

Here's one for you:  I once got a red light ticket for a city I'd never even been to.  Whoever (or whatever) read the plate from the picture misread a D to a B, and I got sent a ticket.  The make of the car was totally different from the vehicle I had, but I guess they don't check stuff like that.  Anyway, I wrote an angry letter, sent a photocopy of my own vehicle registration, and didn't hear back from them.  Or maybe that was a photo radar ticket, for speeding.  Either way.  I wonder how often stuff like that happens.

I've gotten them before.  They are not points on your license or anything because they can't prove who was driving your car (I think...).  I've never contested one because I coiuldn't figure out how and knew I was in the wrong and needed to just suck it up :/

I feel a little better about this now. I was really just worried about the points on my license. I have a perfectly clean record and I'd like not to marr it with a failure to stop at a red light, (even though it was yellow!!!).

Thanks for making me feel better!!

BTW, I don't necessarily disagree with these light things either. I would hope that it would only be a citation and not a insurance violation something or other, (you know what I mean) because I don't think ours take pictures of the driver. But here, it's $100. *sigh*