Losing your license is a concerning possibility, especially in a largely car-dependent state like Texas. It isn’t just a serious threat when it comes to your ability to drive your personal vehicle, either. If your livelihood depends on being able to operate a commercial vehicle, losing your license for any period of time can spell serious trouble for your ability to support yourself financially.

Often, loss of a driver’s license happens as a result of one or more traffic violations, especially if they’re significant ones. Depending on what those violations are and how many of them you’re convicted of, you could either lose your license only for a brief suspension period, or permanently. Either way, though, there are options for you to potentially get your license reinstated and get back on the road.

Have you lost your license, or are you facing the possibility of a suspension? In this blog post, we’ll break down in further detail what may lead to the loss of either your personal or commercial driver’s license so that you can better understand your situation, as well as offer guidance for getting it back as soon as possible.

Reinstating your personal driver’s license

Texas, like many other states, operates on a point system when it comes to tracking traffic violations for personal vehicles. You’ll receive two points against your license for any moving traffic violation and three points for any violation that results in a crash when you’re convicted.

Suspension or revocation of your license depends on the number and types of violations you’ve committed within a specific period of time. Four or more moving violations within 12 months or seven or more violations within 24 months leads to the suspension of your license.

Significant violations, particularly ones that are alcohol or drug-related, caused a death attributed to reckless driving, or caused a crash while uninsured, will cause your license to be automatically suspended and could ultimately cause it to be revoked permanently.

To get your license reinstated, you’ll need to determine your eligibility before proceeding. Once you’ve done so, you’ll need to submit reinstatement fees and compliance documentation by mail, fax, or email. These documents will have to be submitted as PDFs.

Reinstating a commercial driver’s license

Texas’ Department of Public Safety provides a detailed description of different traffic violations you could be convicted of as a commercial driver and the kind of suspension or other punishment you can expect as a result. We’ve also written previously about violations, divided between “serious” and “major,” that can lead to a loss of your CDL either temporarily or permanently.

To reiterate, a temporary suspension of your CDL doesn’t require you to do anything to get it reinstated. This will happen automatically once the suspension period ends. A permanent revocation, however, will require you to retain the services of an attorney if you decide to fight the decision.

Working with a traffic ticket attorney

Whether you’re working to reinstate a personal or commercial license, it’s worthwhile to get help from an attorney to make sure you’re taking advantage of every possible opportunity that may allow you to get your license reinstated as quickly as possible.

A traffic ticket attorney, especially one with substantial experience helping clients in similar matters, can help you organize your documentation and build as strong of a case as possible to give you the best chance at getting your license back. If you need this kind of attorney, the team at Monks Law Firm in Houston can help. Contact us, email us at gpmonks@monkslaw.com, or call directly at (713) 666-6657 to schedule a consultation.