Legally Speaking Questions & Answers

May 1 Questions

Q: If I get a speeding ticket, will defensive driving remove the ticket from my record?

A: The state allows you to dismiss one ticket per year by taking defensive driving.

Q: Will the ticket be removed from my insurance record?

A: Your insurance company is probably going to find out about it.

Q: Can my insurance company raise my rates because of that one ticket?

A: They can if they want to. They can decide how much they want to charge you to get you the coverage that you want.

Q: What is the difference between title insurance and mortgage insurance?

A: These are two separate concepts. When you buy your house, you get a title insurance policy and the title insurance company is insuring what you purchased – the lot that had a specific dimension, etc. – that the title to that lot was "good title," meaning there aren't any claims against it, easements over it that you don't know about and other issues that might come up regarding the ownership of that land.

Your mortgage company may or may not require you, as part of your loan, to purchase mortgage insurance. Mortgage insurance pays your mortgage if you're unable to pay it. That insurance really protects the lender more so than you.