A municipal traffic ticket can be a trying experience. It gets even worse if you lose the physical copy of the ticket, because of the penalties associated with failure to pay them. If you're from a different state, this can be even more chaotic and confusing. Fortunately, there are some steps you can take.

Contact County Courthouse

You can find the telephone number for the county courthouse for the jurisdiction that gave the ticket by entering the name of the county and Courthouse on a search engine. Because many county names are not unique in the United States, it's also worthwhile to narrow the search by ZIP code, or by state. The county may have an online database you can search and online payment options.

Check Home State DMV

Because all but two states (North Carolina and Kansas) share driver record data on the Interstate Driver Database, if you can't remember the name of the municipality that issued the ticket, you may be able to check in your home state for any outstanding tickets on your driver's license. There may be a lag of anywhere from a week to several months for it to show up on the register in your home state.

Contact Credit Reporting Bureau

This is the traffic ticket equivalent of archeology. If you have a very old outstanding ticket with a fine, it will show up on your credit report. You should be checking your credit report for irregularities at least once a year, and all three credit reporting agencies--Equifaxt, Expedia and TransUnion--will give you a free copy once per year.

Source:

Traffic Ticket FAQ: State of Connecticut

More Information:

Criminal Defense: Interstate Driver's License Compact Members