Operating During a Suspension Period

Scheduled Suspension Notice for Operating During a Suspension Period

Many times, drivers are blindsided when they receive a notice of scheduled suspension for “operating during a suspension period.” This particular type of proposed suspension is issued by the NJ MVC whenever a driver is documented to have been operating or driving a motor vehicle while the driver’s license is suspended or revoked. This is essentially a “Driving While Suspended” offense, but handled at the administrative level (NJ MVC) instead of in the court system.

Common Examples of Operating During a Suspension Period

The most typical scenario is that a driver is issued a ticket for some sort of moving violation while their license is suspended, but the officer (for whatever reason) does not issue a ticket for driving while suspended. This could include an officer not having access to license information on his patrol car computer, or even a simple mistake as to the status of a person’s license.

Other situations where a license suspension is issued for operating during a suspension period include situations where an officer tries to be nice and “let a driver go with just a seatbelt ticket.” Most officers won’t even realize that this will actually lead to an administrative suspension by the NJ MVC, and create more headache for a driver than if they were issued a ticket for driving while suspended.

Additionally, a driver could be issued a MVC suspension when a driver is involved in an accident while his or her license is suspended, but the driver is not issued any ticket for the offense.

Most of the time, the driver mistakenly believes that not being issued a ticket for Driving While Suspended is a ‘lucky break’, and never expects anything else to come of the incident. Unfortunately, the NJ Motor Vehicle Commission picks up on any moving violations or records on your abstract, and will issue a suspension for 180 days on their own initiative for operating during a suspension period.

Hire a Lawyer to Request a Hearing for Your ‘Operating During a Suspension Period’ Suspension

If you receive a notice of scheduled suspension for operating during a suspension period, you should consider hiring an attorney to request a hearing at the Trenton Motor Vehicle Commission regional office. At these hearings, a driver and his or her lawyer can argue certain facts relating to both the reason for the original suspension, any mitigating factors that show that the proposed suspension is unnecessary, and hardship reasons as to how a loss of license could affect the driver’s livelihood.

Our firm is highly successful at requesting NJ MVC hearings, and has a track record of success in reducing and eliminating proposed suspensions for ‘Operating During a Suspension Period’ violations. Call 1 855-450-8310 to speak with an experienced license suspension attorney today.