Home > West Virginia

Sign Up If You Want To:

Speak with a professional in detail
about driving record services.
Discover the power of screening
new hires.

Company Name
First Name
Last Name
Email Address
Phone Number

West Virginia Driving Record

Driving a motor vehicle in West Virginia is a privilege and that privilege carries many responsibilities. This privilege must fi rst be earned and then carefully guarded or it may be lost.

Your well-being, as well as the safety of the occupants of your vehicle, depends upon your ability to operate a motor vehicle. In addition, the safety of occupants of other vehicles you meet and pass and each pedestrian and bicyclist also depend directly upon your ability to operate a motor vehicle. As a driver on the road, you have the privilege to drive because you have successfully shown that you possess the knowledge and skill to be a safe driver.

West Virginia Driver License

If you live in West Virginia and want to drive a motor vehicle on the public roads, you must have a West Virginia drivers license, unless you are expressly exempt. You must carry your license with you when you drive.

Mandatory License Revocation

Convictions for certain violations of motor vehicle laws are serious and require the immediate revocation of your drivers license. The DMV must revoke a drivers license when it receives a notice of fi nal conviction of any of the following:

Manslaughter or negligent homicide resulting from the operation of a motor vehicle
Two or more moving violation convictions as a graduated driver
Providing false information to the DMV
Leaving the scene of an accident that results in death or personal injury
Three convictions of reckless driving in 24 months
Racing on streets or highways (drag racing)
Driving while license is suspended/revoked
Failure to satisfy a civil judgment against you as a result of your involvement in an automobile accident
Conviction in this state or in any other state for driving under the influence of alcohol, controlled substances or drugs
Failure to pay for gasoline upon second conviction
Any felony committed using a motor vehicle

West Virginia Drinking and Driving

The legal drinking age in West Virginia is 21 years old. West Virginia has a zero tolerance law for drivers under the age of 21 who unwisely and illegally choose to drive with any measurable alcohol in their system.

This means that if you are under the age of 21 and any amount of alcohol is found in your system, you will lose your drivers license.

In West Virginia, a BAC of more than 0.05% and less than 0.08% is relevant evidence to presume that a person is driving while his or her ability to drive is impaired. If a drivers BAC is 0.08% or more, he or she is presumed to be driving under the infl uence. Be aware, however, that under the West Virginia law, your drivers license can be revoked if your BAC is less than 0.08%.

When a person has more than one drink per hour, the BAC level builds up in his or her body. For example, the BAC level actually continues to increase after the last drink at 11:30 p.m. and several hours later, at 4 a.m., the BAC of that person is still above 0.06%. Persons with this level of alcohol in their bodies can be arrested for driving under the infl uence of alcohol (DUI).

If you are arrested for DUI, you are subject to the Implied Consent Law. As a driver, you are deemed to have given consent to take the designated breath test for purposes of determining alcohol content in your body. If you refuse to take the breath test, your privilege to operate a motor vehicle will be revoked for a period of one year and up to life.

Offense	Jail/Fines	Minimum Revocation Periods
Zero tolerance (Under 21 w/any measurable alcohol)	$25 to $100 fine	30 days
Zero tolerance - 2nd offense	24 hours/$100 to $500 fi ne	60 days or until 18th birthday, whichever is greater
DUI - alcohol or drugs w/BAC <.15 or knowingly permitting - 1st offense	Up to 6 months/$100 to $500 fine	15 days
DUI - alcohol or drugs w/BAC .15 or > - 1st offense	2 days to 6 months/$100 to $1,000 fine	45 days
DUI w/Implied Consent 1st offense	24 hours to 6 months/$100 to $500 fine	45 days
DUI w/Child Endangerment	2 days to 12 months/$200 to $1,000 fine	60 days
DUI w/bodily injury	24 hours to 12 months/$200 to $1,000 fine	60 days
DUI w/Death - misdemeanor	90 days to 12 months/$500 to $1,000 fine	1 year
DUI w/Death - felony	2 to 10 years/$1,000 to $3,000 fi ne	1 year
DUI - 2nd offense	6 months to 12 months/$1,000 to $3,000 fine	1 year
DUI - 3rd or subsequent offense	1 to 3 years/$3,000 to $5,000 fine	1 year

West Virginia Point System

All drivers license applicants are subject to a review of their driving records through the Problem Driver Point System (PDPS), a national driver registry designed to track violations and suspensions from state to state. All drivers who renew their drivers license will be reveiwed through PDPS as well. If you have previously held a license in another state and had any moving violations, please make sure to satisfy any citations and suspensions you may have pending before applying for or renewing a West irginia drivers license. The DMV is prohibited from licensing any driver whose driving history refl ects an unsettled problem in another state.

Points	Type of Violation
8	Fleeing from an officer
6	Speeding in a school zone
6	Passing a stopped school bus
6	Reckless/careless driving
6	Property damage only, hit and run, leaving the scene
5	Speeding 15 m.p.h. or more above the speed limit
3	Speeding 10 m.p.h. to 14 m.p.h. over the speed limit
3	Passing violation
3	Failure to yield violation
3	Failure to obey traffic light
3	Failure to obey stop sign
3	Driving left of center
3	Driving too fast for conditions
3	Failure to maintain control of vehicle
3	Hazardous driving
3	Driving the wrong way on a one way street
3	Littering
3	Improper lane violations
3	Driving on wrong side of road
2	Speeding 5 m.p.h. to 9 m.p.h. over the speed limit
2	Following too closely
2	More than 3 in the front seat
2	Improper turning
2	Improper backing
2	Improper signal or no signal