Perhaps one of the worst things that happen when you get a traffic ticket these days is, soon after receiving your ticket, your mailbox is flooded with advertisements from attorneys who want your business.
Please allow me to help you sift through the "junk." As a traffic ticket attorney who has been advertising since 1995, I feel uniquely qualified to point out some obvious deceptions and things you must be aware of when viewing these advertisements.
Without question, the biggest attempt at deception by attorney ads comes in the form of. . .you guessed it . . . price. Why? Because direct mail is what's called a "targeted advertisement." As a result of it's targeted nature, the advertising attorney knows exactly what kind of ticket you have before sending you the ad.
So when you see things like "Fees starting at $4.95," you should know that's almost always a complete lie (and in this case, got an attorney arrested and 8 years probation). If it's not, it's just dumb luck on the attorney's part. The reason I say that is, although the attorney may charge that low amount, it's for one very strange and bizarre violation that almost never gets written. The odds of you having that type of violation are slim. So when you call and ask about having YOUR matter handled for that low fee, the answer is almost always "oh, we don't charge that amount for speeding." Of course not.
Knowingly advertising a price for a service that a person doesn't need or trying to deceive someone with one price and then switching to another is called "bait and switch," and besides being borderline illegal, it's just plain wrong. (I say borderline because there is a chance you could have that strange violation and the ad might apply to you) I'd love to know how many people only pay $4.95. I'm thinking almost no one.
I ask you, would you want to do business with someone who advertises in that manner? How about an attorney who advertises that way? Doesn't that start the relationship off on a foundation of lies and deceit? Makes you wonder why attorneys have the reputation they do.
The other big lie comes in the form of the "no points or your money back" guarantee. You'll see an asterisk next to the guarantee, and if you read the fine print, it almost always says something to the effect that the guarantee only applies to non-criminal, non-accident, non-moving violation. Newsflash, you can't get points if you have a non-criminal, non-accident, or non-moving violation. You get points for moving violations only.
I offer you these insights because it's important that you ask questions when you hire an attorney so you can be comfortable in knowing what is going to happen and what you can expect. Only then can you truly be sure that you've made the right decision and hired the right attorney.
If you want someone to give you an honest assessment of your case (what it will cost, including the possibility of court costs), not what you want to hear, drop me a line at 866-374-8355 or email me at [email protected]
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