FAILURE TO APPEAR OR PAY CIVIL PENALTY;

REINSTATEMENT OF DRIVER LICENSE (a) Notice of Failure to Appear or Pay. If no mandatory hearing is required and the defendant has been cited but fails to pay the civil penalty or appear, the clerk must send the department notice of such failure as required by section 318.15(1), Florida Statutes. (b) Appearance After Notice Sent. If the defendant appears before the clerk after the notice was sent but before the department suspends the driver license, the defendant may pay the civil penalty together with any additional penalty required by section 318.18(8)(a), Florida Statutes, or may request a hearing. If the defendant requests a hearing, the clerk shall set the case for hearing upon payment of the costs specified in section 318.18(8)(a), Florida Statutes. (c) Reinstatement of License. If the defendant appears before the clerk after the department suspends the driver license, January 1, 2026 Florida Rules of Traffic Court 33 the defendant may pay the civil penalty together with any additional penalty required by section 318(8)(a), Florida Statutes, or request a hearing. A request for a hearing must be made as provided by section 318.15(1)(c), Florida Statutes. If the official grants the defendant’s request for a hearing and determines that the defendant committed the infraction, the defendant shall be subject to the penalty provisions of section 318.14(5), Florida Statutes. Committee Notes 1988 Amendment. It was thought that a defendant who fails to appear until after his or her driver license has been suspended (which could be years later) should not be allowed to elect a hearing in those cases where the state has been prejudiced by the passage of time.