Costs of Getting Back on the Road

Nearly two years after being stopped for my first DUI, I’m anxiously awaiting the eligibility date for the restoration of my driving privileges and I’m still paying, literally and figuratively, for my poor decision making.

In March, I wrote about my experience, specifically the overall cost of my two DUIs.  When I added it all up, the estimated total was $10,066.00, without counting the cost of ignition interlock, increased insurance costs or lost wages.

I still can’t account for increased insurance or lost wages, mostly because I hate math but also because I think I’d cry at the actual amount, especially considering I am still unemployed.  I can, however, update the total with the expected cost of getting my license reinstated.

I recently received the Restoration Requirements Letter from PennDot, which told me what I have to do, as well as how much I have to pay to get my driving privileges back.

First, I had to send a $25 restoration fee, proof that I don’t own my car, and an application for an ignition interlock license along with another $28 application fee.

After mailing PennDot all the forms and a $53 check to cover the state’s fees, I had to call a company that provides ignition interlock systems to set up the install.  This requires that I send another form, to prove that I don’t own a vehicle.  Thankfully, this form doesn’t require another fee.

Once the form was processed, I was able to schedule the installation of the ignition interlock device.  Pennsylvania state law requires that ignition interlock be installed on all vehicles registered in the offender’s name.  Because I don’t own any vehicles, I only have to have it installed on the car I drive which will amount to $158.40.

In addition, the machine must be calibrated monthly, for a cost of $106 per month.  I am required to keep the ignition interlock on my car for one year, which adds up to $1324.40 for installation and maintenance.

When you add that total to the PennDot fees, I’m looking at a grand total of 1246.40 to be allowed to drive again.  After all I’ve paid so far and how difficult the past year has been, this doesn’t really seem to be too much to pay to restore my independence.

I have to cringe though, when add that to my previous total.  The overall estimated cost of my two DUIs is roughly 11,390.40, disregarding insurance increases and lost wages.

I could have done a lot of travelling with that money, but instead I’ve been living in a room at my parent’s house trying to make ends meet.  Although I’m cringing at the thought of having to pay more money, I’m eager to start driving again, get back on my feet and starting moving away from my past mistakes one step at a time.

This lesson is still being learned.

Note: Upon installation of the Ignition Interlock, I was informed that the original quote was incorrect.  I have since adjusted the above totals to reflect the new information about the charges. -B 

I can’t afford it, can you?

Everyone’s seen the sign “DUI: you can’t afford it.”  It’s a brilliant campaign, really.  It ties in not only the monetary issue but also draws on the moral and social “costs” we’ve all heard about time and time again in one quick sentence.

I recently did a breakdown of what my two DUI’s cost me overall, and I figured it was worth sharing.  I’m not trying to discount the social and emotional costs of drunk driving; I’m just trying to shed light on another facet.

I’d heard the tragic stories and seen the health class videos and I chose to drive anyway.  It wasn’t until I sat and added it all up that I realized just how much it really costs, even when no one gets hurt.

First, a quick disclaimer:  I am in my early 20s and a social drinker.  I’m just your average person.  I’m not an alcoholic or a trouble maker, and most people who know me will tell you I’m one of the last people they’d ever expected to be arrested.  Yet, I have been.  Twice.  In the span of a year, I was convicted for two DUIs.  I made bad choices and paid the consequences for those choices.  I’ve learned from my mistakes, and I hope other people can too.  I’m going to try not to be preachy, and I don’t need anyone to preach to me.  I just want to share some information and maybe save you some money and embarrassment—if I can do more than that, awesome.  If you take away nothing, at least I tried.

Let’s start with DUI number one.  At a BAC of .089%, I was just over the legal limit and fell into the lowest tier according to PA law.  I’d had four beers in a two hour span and thought I was just fine to drive.  In all reality, if I didn’t have a tendency to speed, I probably would have been.

Since it was my first offense, I was eligible for Pennsylvania’s Assisted Rehabilitative Disposition (ARD) program, which is essentially a one-time “get out of jail free” card as long as you can stay out of trouble.

I paid a lawyer $1500 to fill out some paperwork, went to court and was fined $763, ordered to complete a CRN evaluation that cost $65 and as a result of that had to enroll in Alcohol Highway Safety classes that cost $250.  When you add that to the $150 it cost to bail my car out of the impound lot, I was looking at a grand total of $2,728.  Basically, it was an expensive four beers and a slap on the wrist.

I swore I’d never make the same mistake again, but didn’t learn my lesson.  I was still making short rides home from the bar or driving because I’d had the least to drink.  To be clear, I would never drive when I considered myself “too drunk” but I obviously still wasn’t taking into account the legal limit.

Almost five months to the day after my first arrest, I decided to “move my car” which was parked in a tow-zone.  Instead of just letting a friend put my car in a different spot and take me home with her, I convinced her I’d be fine to drive it to her house.  It was a stupid decision, I knew it then, and I’ve paid for it:

After a minor fender bender at a traffic light (thankfully no one was injured and the damage was only to my own car), I was field sobriety tested, breathalyzed and arrested for DUI number two.  I was taken to a local hospital for bloodwork (that cost $800), processed at the police department and released.  It cost $250 to get my car out of jail this time and another $500 to repair the damages.  The lawyer’s fee increased too, to $3000.

Again I was required to complete a CRN evaluation for $70, and because it was a second offense I also needed a drug and alcohol evaluation for $175.  The results of the two evaluations were another round of Alcohol Highway Safety classes for $250 and a mandatory out-patient treatment program that cost $320.

If you’re keeping track, I’d paid out over $5000 for the second DUI and I hadn’t even gone to court yet.  Again, my BAC was low compared to many DUI offenders, at .14% I fell into the second tier of the Pennsylvania DUI law.  Because I had been polite to the arresting officer and completed much of the court requirements prior to sentencing, I was only charged with DUI (all other traffic violations were dropped) and was given the minimum sentence.

Even with all that it was still pretty costly, court fines and fees totaled $850.  I had to go to jail for 7 weekends at $20 a night plus a $14 urinalysis upon arrival costing $378 in all.  I was on house arrest for 16 days at $10 a day, or $160, and I had to pay probation fees, $225.

So far my second DUI has cost me $6978.  In addition to that, I had to go back to court for the first DUI because I had violated the terms of the ARD program, I plead guilty, didn’t have a lawyer present (so I saved some money there) and was fined an additional $360 plus 6 months probation.

When you add it all up the grand total for my two DUIs is roughly $10,066.00, and I was in the low range for DUI penalties.

It kills me to think of all the things I would have rather done with my ten-thousand dollars.

And that’s just the total of my receipts, I haven’t calculated the cost of my increased car insurance or loss of wages (I lost my job because I can’t drive).  Plus, I still have to pay for the ignition interlock when I do get my license back- which I’ve heard costs a pretty penny.

I agree with the sign.  DUI: I can’t afford it.  Lesson Learned.