Geico's Points Policy: Thresholds and Rate Behavior After Violations

Geico does not use your state's DMV point total to price your policy. Instead, they apply their own violation-based surcharge schedule that tracks the type, date, and severity of each traffic conviction independently. A single speeding ticket 15 mph over the limit typically adds a 15-25% surcharge for three years from the conviction date, regardless of whether your state assigns two points or four. The distinction matters because state points often expire faster than Geico's surcharge window. If your state removes points after two years but Geico's underwriting looks back three to five years, your premium will not drop until Geico's timeline closes. You cannot force a surcharge removal by completing a defensive driving course that clears state points unless Geico's underwriting guidelines explicitly recognize that course, which varies by state. Geico applies separate surcharge multipliers for different violation types. Minor speeding violations under 15 mph over carry the smallest surcharge, typically 10-20%. Major speeding violations over 25 mph, reckless driving, or at-fault accidents with property damage over $2,000 trigger surcharges of 30-50%. DUI convictions trigger both a surcharge and a mandatory SR-22 filing, which shifts the policy into Geico's high-risk tier or results in immediate non-renewal depending on state and prior violation history.

Geico tolerates one major violation on a policy without threatening cancellation. A single speeding ticket or at-fault accident will increase your rate but will not trigger non-renewal if you have been insured with them for at least six months and carried continuous coverage. The surcharge applies at your next renewal and persists for three to five years depending on violation type. A second major violation within three years moves you into borderline underwriting territory. Geico may non-renew your policy at the next renewal, especially if the second violation occurs within 12 months of the first or if the second event is a major speeding ticket, reckless driving, or at-fault accident. Non-renewal means Geico will not cancel mid-term but will decline to offer a new policy when your current term ends. You receive 30 to 60 days' notice depending on state law. A third major violation or any DUI conviction almost always triggers non-renewal. Geico's underwriting treats three moving violations in three years as a pattern of high-risk behavior that exceeds their acceptable risk profile. At that point, you will need to shop non-standard carriers like The General, Acceptance, or state-assigned risk pools, which price policies 50-150% higher than Geico's standard rates.

Geico's surcharge window for a minor speeding violation runs three years from the conviction date. If you received a ticket on March 15, 2023, the surcharge applies to every renewal through March 2026. The surcharge does not prorate or gradually decrease during that window. You pay the full surcharge percentage for three full years, then it drops to zero at the first renewal after the three-year mark. Major violations carry a five-year surcharge window. Reckless driving, hit-and-run, or at-fault accidents with injury extend the lookback period to five years. DUI convictions remain on Geico's underwriting record for five to ten years depending on state, and the SR-22 filing requirement typically lasts three years from the conviction date in most states. Completing a defensive driving course does not automatically remove a Geico surcharge. Some states allow point removal from your DMV record after course completion, but Geico's surcharge is tied to the violation itself, not the point total. If your state mandates that carriers recognize defensive driving course completion for surcharge reduction, Geico will comply, but you must request the discount at renewal and provide proof of completion. Most states do not mandate this, so the surcharge persists regardless of course completion.

A single speeding ticket 1-15 mph over the limit increases your Geico premium by 10-20% on average. If you were paying $120 per month, expect your renewal quote to land between $132 and $144 per month. The increase applies to your base rate, not just liability coverage, so comprehensive and collision premiums rise proportionally. A speeding ticket 16-25 mph over the limit triggers a 20-35% increase. A $150 monthly premium jumps to $180-$200. Tickets over 25 mph or reckless driving citations push the surcharge to 35-50%, moving a $150 premium to $200-$225. At-fault accidents with property damage over $2,000 carry the same surcharge range as major speeding violations. DUI convictions impose the steepest surcharge, often 80-150% if Geico agrees to renew at all. A $150 monthly premium can jump to $270-$375, and you will need to file SR-22 for three years in most states, which adds a $25-$50 annual filing fee. Geico non-renews most DUI policies in states where non-standard competitors like The General or Progressive's non-standard division offer better pricing for high-risk drivers.

Geico evaluates non-renewal risk at each policy renewal, not mid-term. If you receive a second ticket three months before your renewal date, Geico will issue a renewal quote with the updated surcharge and may include a non-renewal notice effective at the end of that term. If the second ticket arrives two months after renewal, you have nearly 12 months before Geico makes a non-renewal decision. Non-renewal notices arrive 30 to 60 days before your policy expiration depending on state law. The notice states that Geico will not offer a renewal policy and provides the effective date when coverage ends. You are not being canceled mid-term, so you avoid a coverage gap if you secure a new policy before the expiration date. Non-renewal does not appear on your insurance record the way a mid-term cancellation does, but future carriers will ask about prior non-renewals during the application process. Geico's non-renewal threshold depends on violation count, not state point totals. Two major violations in 24 months nearly always trigger non-renewal. Three violations in 36 months guarantee it. Minor violations like parking tickets or non-moving equipment violations do not count toward this threshold, but any moving violation that appears on your motor vehicle report does.

Geico's surcharge schedule is more aggressive than Progressive's or State Farm's for certain violation types, especially major speeding tickets and reckless driving. If Geico raised your rate 40% after a single ticket, Progressive may apply a 25-30% surcharge for the same violation. Rate differences widen further if you qualify for defensive driver discounts or bundling incentives that Geico does not offer in your state. Non-standard carriers like The General, Acceptance, and Dairyland specialize in policies for drivers with two or more violations. Their base rates start higher than Geico's standard rates, but their surcharge multipliers are lower because they already price in violation risk. A driver paying $225 per month at Geico after two tickets might pay $200 per month at The General, even though The General's clean-record rate would be $180 compared to Geico's $120. Shopping immediately after a violation quote locks in current pricing before additional violations occur. Geico's second-violation surcharge stacks on top of the first, so a driver with one ticket paying $150 who receives a second ticket will jump to $225-$250, not $180. Switching carriers before the second violation allows you to restart the violation count at a carrier with a higher tolerance for prior infractions.

Request a rate review at every renewal. Geico does not automatically remove surcharges when the three-year or five-year window closes. If your violation aged off but your rate did not drop, call and request a manual re-rate. Bring your current motor vehicle report to confirm the violation no longer appears in the surcharge window. Maintain continuous coverage without lapses. A coverage gap longer than 30 days resets your insurance history and eliminates any loyalty discounts you earned with Geico before the violation. Carriers treat a lapse as a separate risk signal that stacks on top of violation surcharges, often adding another 10-20% to your premium. Complete a state-approved defensive driving course only if your state mandates surcharge reduction for course completion or if Geico offers a voluntary discount for it. Call Geico before enrolling to confirm whether the course will reduce your surcharge. If it does not, the course still benefits you by preventing future violations, but it will not lower your current premium.