Thousands of Minnesotans get pulled over every day, and these traffic stops can result in fines, license restrictions and even jail time depending on the situation. Many people do what they can to avoid these traffic stops, but outside of watching your speed limit, what else can you really do to avoid a ticket? In today’s blog, we share five smart ways to avoid being pulled over by police while driving.
How To Avoid A Traffic Stop
Besides watching your speedometer, here are five things you can do to avoid getting pulled over by police for a traffic violation in Minnesota.
1. Buckle Up – Wearing your seat belt not only helps keep you safe, but it can prevent the cops from pulling you over. Minnesota’s Seat Belt Law is considered a primary offense, meaning that police do not need to witness any other traffic violation in order to pull you over if they see you or a passenger driving without a seat belt on. If you aren’t wearing a seat belt, police can pull you over even if you’re following every other rule on the road. To avoid police and stay safe, buckle up.
2. Put Down The Phone – Similarly, Minnesota recently passed the Hands-Free Cell Phone Law, which makes it illegal for drivers to use a cell phone while driving unless it is run through Bluetooth or another hands-free system. If you are seen composing or reading a text, or just holding your phone up to your ear while you’re driving, police can pull you over. Make sure you have a plan to transition any calls to a hands-free system behind the wheel, or simply ignore your phone until you reach your destination.
3. Keep Your Tint Legal – Minnesota has specific laws regarding how much tint can be on a vehicle’s windows. The legal amount of tint varies based on the window, but make sure any custom tinting you pay for is street legal. What’s legal in Minnesota is different from what’s legal in neighboring states, so if you are buying a new car from out of state or you’re moving to Minnesota, make sure any vehicle windows abide by the state’s window tinting laws, otherwise police can pull you over.
4. Mind Your Brights – Using our brights can help us see more area when we’re driving at night, and this is especially helpful during deer season in Minnesota, but you need to make sure your bright headlights aren’t drawing attention for the wrong reasons. One of the ways police catch drunk drivers is by seeing how long it takes them to turn off their brights when they are approaching another vehicle or entering a well-lit town. You should use your brights when safe, but always turn them off well in advance of another vehicle or in areas where you won’t need them, because they can attract all the wrong attention.
5. Don’t Be The Fastest – Finally, while you should always monitor your speed, it’s not always about exactly how much you’re going over the speed limit as much as it is about your speed relative to others. Don’t be the fastest car in the pack, otherwise you’ll draw the attention of the police. Sometimes you’ll be pulled over for going seven miles over the speed limit, other times you may be fine going 15 miles over the speed limit, it just depends on your speed relative to others on the road. Keep up with traffic, but don’t be the leader.
For more tips, or for help with a speeding ticket or another traffic charge, reach out to Avery and the team at Appelman Law Firm at (952) 224-2277 today.
