An unpaid parking ticket might seem trivial, but it’s actually a big deal. New York state imposes strict penalties on drivers who ignore their tickets. **Your license could get suspended** if these tickets pile up or the amount owed gets too high. This crackdown isn’t unique to New York; many states are getting tougher about unpaid fines. Ignoring them can **land you in hot water** faster than you think. So, don’t let a simple ticket become a major headache!

For those of you who think that it’s ok for you to ignore your parking tickets since you live “across the river” New Jersey does the same thing.

There is another consideration as well: states are working feverishly to connect their department of motor vehicle information, so if you do something wrong in one state, you can’t just go to the neighboring state to get a fresh start.

What is at stake for these states is millions of dollars in so far unpaid fines. They want their money, especially as the Recession continues to weight down local, national and global economies. Their best efforts to collect these unpaid fines come only when they provide a swift and severe penalty to people who do not pay. If they just let you keep racking up the parking fines you are likely to go on racking up the parking fines. If they suspend your license for it, however, you not only have to pay your parking fines you also get socked with a driver’s license reinstatement fee as an added deterrent.

In the United States today a driver’s license is very important if you work or go to school or just need to get to the grocery store once a week. There is no other way to travel if not by your own transportation. So the threat of losing your license should be enough to convince every driver to pay their parking tickets before they lose their privileges.