California License Suspension Rules
How this state counts violations toward suspension (points or convictions) and how DUI, reckless driving, and excessive speeding factor in.
- Suspension metric
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points
- Threshold value
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4
- Lookback period (months)
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12
- DUI treatment under this scheme
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A DUI in California is handled by direct DMV action rather than through the point count alone. The handbook states that on conviction, DMV suspends or revokes the driving privilege for one year, and the driver must complete a licensed DUI program, file an SR 22 or SR 1P insurance certificate, pay any reissue or restriction fees, and may be required to install an ignition interlock device. On the criminal side, a first DUI can carry up to six months in jail, a court fine, and vehicle impound at the driver's expense. All DUI convictions remain on the driver's record for 10 years, and DMV or the court will layer additional penalties on any second DUI in that window. Within the negligent-operator points scheme, a DUI conviction is assessed at two points (CVC §12810(d)), so it counts toward the 4-in-12 / 6-in-24 / 8-in-36 negligent-operator thresholds even while the direct one-year DUI action runs.
- Reckless treatment under this scheme
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Reckless driving that causes injury is handled by direct DMV action: the handbook states that DMV 'will revoke your driving privilege if you are convicted of a hit-and-run or reckless driving that resulted in injury,' independent of the negligent-operator point count. Reckless driving that does not cause injury is a two-point offense under CVC §12810(d), so it accrues toward the 4-in-12, 6-in-24, or 8-in-36 negligent-operator thresholds that trigger a separate probation, suspension, or revocation action. On the criminal side, reckless driving carries jail, fines, or both under CVC §23103, and a person convicted of engaging in a speed contest that injures another person is subject to imprisonment, fine, or both under CVC §23109.
- Excessive speeding treatment under this scheme
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The 2025 handbook does not print a per-mph excessive-speeding penalty schedule; it warns broadly that driving faster or slower than the speed limit can be cited and that fines are doubled in Safety Enhanced-Double Fine Zones and in construction or maintenance zones with workers present, with work-zone fines running to $1,000 or more. Under the negligent-operator points scheme (CVC §12810(e)), an ordinary speeding conviction is one point. A speed-contest or exhibition-of-speed conviction under CVC §23109 is a two-point offense and, when it causes injury to another person, carries imprisonment, a fine, or both, plus discretionary DMV action. Reckless driving under CVC §23103, which can capture extreme speeds paired with willful disregard for safety, is also a two-point offense.
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