One of the most common questions we get asked at the Marc Lopez Law Firm is, Do I qualify for specialized driving privileges? The answer to that is, most likely, yes. Indiana adopted what is called the specialized driving privilege laws which allows people who have a suspended license for one reason or another to drive whether that be because of someone not paying tickets, someone getting a DUI, or someone getting multiple DUIs and dealing with much greater consequences.
Specialized driving privileges do not allow the same driving practices as having a normal driver’s license and being able to drive anywhere at any time. Specialized driving privileges allows you to drive for life necessities such as going to and from work, medical appointments, childcare or family obligations, religious obligations and more. If your license is suspended due to a criminal case, you may even use specialized driving privileges to go to probation, community corrections, court, or anywhere that would aid in the completion of your sentence.
People that qualify for specialized driving privileges are most likely anybody who has a suspended driver’s license with a couple of exceptions. The first exception is if you are accused of operating a vehicle while intoxicated causing death. If you are being charged with this, you are not going to qualify for specialized driving privileges. The second exception that is common is a default judgment or an unsatisfied judgment. An example of this would be if you got in a car accident, and you did not have insurance. The other party’s insurance would likely have to pay for the damages of the car and would come after you as an at fault party for reimbursement. The court often issues a suspension in cases like this to ensure that you are held accountable for the reimbursement.
There are a couple of insurance requirements when obtaining specialized driving privileges. People getting specialized driving privileges most likely will have to get both SR22 insurance as well as liability insurance to ensure that “high risk” Indiana drivers are covered. Occasionally the courts will make exceptions to this, but more than likely they will require both SR-22 and liability insurance.
Specialized driving privileges have two main purposes. The first is to make sure people can still get to where they need to go, make a living, and care for themselves and their families. The second purpose of specialized driving privileges is to make sure people are insured while they are driving to protect themselves as well as others on the roads.
At the Marc Lopez Law Firm, we love helping people drive again. If you have any questions regarding specialized driving privileges, your license, or anything else, give us a call at 317-632-3642 and remember—always plead the 5th.
