Defensive driving, also called traffic school, is a class that teaches drivers techniques that help them drive more safely and with fewer accidents. In California, special traffic schools have been set up specifically to help educate people who have received traffic tickets for minor violations. These defensive driving schools are referred to as Traffic Violator Schools (TVS) by the state of California and its courts.

Course Content and Requirements

In order to dismiss a traffic ticket, you must take a California defensive driving class that has been approved by the Department of Motor Vehicles. All state-approved traffic violator schools must last at least 400 minutes (a little over 6 ½ hours). Every California defensive driving school licensed by the state is required to cover much of the same material. Read more...

Course Information

Reading the list of topics above, you may have thought, "Hey, wait a minute....didn't we talk about all of this in driver's ed?" Yes, you probably did. However, there are definitely some differences between driver's ed and California defensive driving. Driver's ed is a course that helps young people who have never driven before learn how to drive. Since driver's ed courses have to cover a lot of basic information about operating a vehicle, they are much longer, at least 30 hours or 2 1/2 semester periods. Read more...

Course Eligibility

Anyone who wants to learn more about driving safety can take a defensive driving course, but you do have to meet the following requirements to get a ticket dismissed through California traffic violator school. Read more...

Online Defensive Driving

In California, each individual traffic court is allowed to decide whether or not it will accept an online defensive driving course. However, many courts do accept online traffic school as an option for ticket dismissal. Read more...

Reasons to Take the Course

Why would you want to waste a beautiful day in sunny California stuck inside a classroom talking about driving safety? Even if you have a traffic ticket, wouldn't it be easier to just pay the fine and get on with your life? Perhaps. However, in many cases, the state of California gives you the option of dismissing one traffic ticket per 18 months by taking California traffic school. If you pay the fine, you're guilty and the ticket goes on your record. If you take traffic school instead, the ticket it dismissed and does not appear on your driving record at all. Read more...

California Defensive Driving Schools

Find a defensive driving class in your area. Read more...

Who Teaches the Course?

California traffic school is taught by instructors who have been licensed by the state. To qualify for a license, an instructor must have a high school education and must have passed a state examination that covers traffic laws, safe driving practices, operation of motor vehicles, and teaching methods and techniques. Read more...