If you decide to take an Arizona Defensive Driving course, you DO NOT need to pay any fines to the court. The state and court fees we collect during registration are the only fines/fees you need to pay to dismiss your ticket.
From time to time, we see students accidentally pay both the fine directly with the court and enroll in an Arizona Defensive Driving course. This can cause your traffic school completion to be rejected. By paying the court directly, you indicate that you are pleading guilty to the violation on your ticket and do not plan to attend traffic school. This will result in points being added to your driving record. If you decide to attend traffic school, the school will collect the state and court fees required to dismiss your ticket. Keep in mind that these fees may be very close to the amount of the fine of the ticket if you would have paid it directly to the court. But, because defensive driving keeps points from being added to your driving record, you will save money in the long run from car insurance premium increases.
If you have paid both the fine with the court and also paid to attend a traffic school, you will need to contact the court as soon as possible to have them refund the payment and guilty plea. Failure to do so will result in your traffic school completion being rejected by the court. You will need to file a "motion" with the court requesting the refund in most cases. A motion is a formal request made to a judge in writing. Please do not continue to take the course until you have approval from the court to refund their payment. Once your motion has been approved, you may continue with your class.
If you have any additional questions on double payment by mistake, you may contact the court printed on your ticket for more information and instructions.