Chapter 20: North Carolina’s motor vehicle law

Almost every rule of the road in this state lives in Chapter 20 of the North Carolina General Statutes, titled “Motor Vehicles.” It covers driver’s licenses, registration, insurance requirements, rules of the road, speeding, DWI, and the Division of Motor Vehicles’ power to suspend and revoke. A few of the sections that matter most for everyday tickets:

DMV license points

When you are convicted of a moving violation, the DMV assigns points under G.S. 20-16(c). Points stay on your record for three years for suspension purposes. The schedule:

When points become a suspension

• 12 or more points within three years — the DMV may suspend your license.
• 8 or more points within three years after reinstatement from a prior suspension — suspension again.
• 7 or more points (or 4 after reinstatement) — the DMV may require a conference and offer a driver improvement clinic. Completing it removes 3 points, once every five years.

Insurance points: the expensive part

Insurance points are set under the Safe Driver Incentive Plan (SDIP), administered through the North Carolina Rate Bureau and explained by the NC Department of Insurance. They are different from DMV points, and they usually cost far more money. Each point level carries a percentage surcharge on your base premium:

The July 1, 2025 changes

The Department of Insurance announced several rating changes effective July 1, 2025. The ones that matter most for tickets:

• PJC lookback grew from three to five years. For PJCs granted on or after July 1, 2025, a PJC protects your insurance only if you have had no other PJC for a moving violation in the prior five years.
• Minor speeding exemption. Speeding 10 mph or less over the limit (not in a school zone) can avoid insurance points only if you have had no other moving violation in the past five years for offenses on or after July 1, 2025.
• Longer surcharges for serious offenses. For convictions with 4 or more SDIP points (other than speeding over the threshold), the surcharge now lasts five years instead of three.
• Higher minimum coverage. Liability minimums rose to $50,000/$100,000 bodily injury and $50,000 property damage.
• Young drivers. The inexperienced-operator surcharge now spans the first eight years of driving for drivers first licensed on or after July 1, 2025.

Prayer for Judgment Continued (PJC)

A PJC is a uniquely North Carolina tool. You admit responsibility (or are found responsible), and the judge “continues” the judgment — no conviction is entered for DMV or insurance purposes, usually with court costs paid. Key limits:

• Insurance: as above, one PJC per household in five years (for PJCs on or after July 1, 2025) is generally protected; a second is treated as a conviction.
• DMV: a PJC is not counted as a conviction for license points, but the DMV treats more than two PJCs within five years differently.
• Not available for certain offenses, including speeding 25 mph or more over the limit, and generally not for CDL holders because of federal anti-masking rules.
• It is a judge’s discretion. A PJC is not automatic, and prosecutors and judges in each county have their own practices.

Because a PJC is a once-in-a-while protection, spending it on a minor 9-over ticket may be a mistake if another option is available.

Other common resolutions

Speeding suspensions under G.S. 20-16.1

Some speeding convictions carry a license suspension by themselves, regardless of points. Under G.S. 20-16.1, the DMV may suspend a license for speeding more than 15 mph over the limit at a speed above 55 mph, and for speeding over 80 mph. Repeat high-speed convictions within a year carry longer suspensions. In many first-offense cases, a limited driving privilege can allow driving for work, school and household needs during the suspension.

Speeding 15 mph or more over the limit, or over 80 mph, can also lead to a charge of reckless driving or a misdemeanor speeding charge rather than an infraction. Speeding to elude arrest is a separate crime.

Out-of-state drivers and commercial drivers

North Carolina shares conviction information with other states through interstate compacts, so a ticket on I-85 can follow a South Carolina or Virginia driver home. Commercial driver’s license (CDL) holders face stricter rules: federal anti-masking rules generally block PJCs and many reductions, and serious violations can disqualify a CDL even if they occur in a personal vehicle. If your job depends on driving, talk with a lawyer before court. See our article on when a ticket threatens your commute or job.

Your court date: what happens in Stanly County

Traffic cases are heard in district court. For Locust, Albemarle, Oakboro, Norwood and the rest of the county, that is usually the Stanly County Courthouse in Albemarle; tickets written in Cabarrus or Union counties are heard there. Every North Carolina county now uses the eCourts system, so you can look up your case and court date online.

A short history of Chapter 20

North Carolina began registering automobiles in the early 1900s, when cars still had to share dirt roads with mules and wagons. As traffic grew, the State created a driver licensing system in the mid-1930s and consolidated its motor vehicle rules in the Motor Vehicle Act of 1937, the foundation of today’s Chapter 20. The DMV point system and insurance surcharges came decades later as the State tried to price risk and reward safe drivers. Today Chapter 20 runs to hundreds of sections — and it changes nearly every legislative session.

Frequently asked questions