What costs can I expect from my DWI?

Costs stemming from a DWI offense vary greatly among offenders and may include:

• Vehicle towing and storage: At the time of the arrest, the vehicle may immediately be released to a sober passenger. If none is present, the officer orders the vehicle towed to the city impound lot at the owner's expense.
• Impounding the plates: Most repeat DWI offenders, and some first-time offenders, qualify for plate impoundment, in which the registration (i.e., license) plates of every vehicle owned or co-owned by the person are seized and destroyed. A co-owner or validly licensed member of the violator's household may obtain specially coded license plates for use during the impoundment period, which typically lasts a year or longer. The state typically charges $50 per vehicle for the special plates. In addition, $50 per vehicle is required at the end of the impoundment period to obtain regular license plates.
• Vehicle forfeiture: Vehicle forfeiture applies to persons convicted of a first-degree DWI crime and to certain other repeat offenders. Only the vehicle involved in the violation is subject to forfeiture. The cost to the violator, of course, is the value of the vehicle, less the property interest of any co-owner, lender or lessor, which is protected.
• Chemical assessment: Upon conviction for a DWI offense or a reduced charge, the offender must submit to a chemical-use assessment administered by the county agency administering the alcohol-safety program. The results are reported to the court and typically cost $150.
• Fine assessed by the court: Although maximum fines are much higher, first-time DWI fines generally range from $100 to $400, while fines for second-time offenders generally range from $300 to $600. The court sometimes reduces the fine by crediting the amount of an offender’s alcohol-treatment program.
• Attorneys' fees: Usually, defense-attorney fees for a DWI offense fall in the range of $2,000–$3,000. A few attorneys will start the tab at about $300 for a pre-trial appearance, although that’s usually just the beginning of the process. Some attorneys routinely charge as little as $1,200 for a DWI defense and a few of the more well-known criminal defense lawyers charge $10,000.
• Alcohol treatment: Alcohol treatment costs also vary from several hundred dollars for outpatient group counseling to $15,000 for a 30-day inpatient program at a private treatment facility.
• Lost wages: For DWI violators, there may be a minimum period of hard revocation before a limited license may be applied for. Without a limited license to drive to work, many violators must take vacation, sick leave or unpaid leave from their jobs (or, at a minimum, must arrange for alternative transportation to and from work). Frequently, offenders must take additional time off work to deal with such things as any implied-consent hearing or other court proceedings, jail or community work service, alcohol treatment and license re-examination. Some DWI offenders, primarily repeat offenders, even lose their jobs as a direct or indirect consequence of the violation—for example, commercial drivers and others who routinely drive in conjunction with their jobs.
• Re-license fees: A person whose driver's license has been revoked for DWI must pay, in addition to the license application fee, a license reinstatement fee of approximately $250, plus a surcharge.
• Increased insurance premiums: Auto insurance policies routinely state the consequences for an impaired driving violation—typically, cancellation of the policy. Then, after the license-revocation period and driver’s license reinstatement, the violator is typically offered only risk rates for reinsurance for a three-to-five-year period. The increased insurance costs could amount to as much as a few thousand dollars per year. In many states, a first-time DWI violation must remain on the driving record for at least 15 years, while a repeat violation is kept permanently on the record, in contrast to five years on the record for most other traffic violations and all reported traffic accidents. Such information is defined as public data and is available to insurance companies, news media and all members of the public during those periods.

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