Yes, significantly. A Rhode Island reckless driving conviction typically doubles or triples your insurance premiums for 3 to 5 years. Some carriers drop drivers with reckless driving convictions entirely, forcing you into the high-risk insurance market with SR-22 filing requirements. Total insurance impact across the priorable window can run $5,000 to $15,000 in increased premiums on top of the court costs and fines. Fighting the reckless driving charge to reduce it to a civil infraction often pays for itself many times over in avoided insurance increases. Most experienced traffic lawyers can produce a reduction that saves the client significantly more than the legal fee.
