Traffic Citation Information

To get your ticket (citation) signed off by an authorized person, ask:

• A police officer: (see *Note below) for “fix-it” tickets (but not for proof of insurance correction);
• The DMV: for driver’s license and car registration violations; or
• A court clerk: for proof of car insurance at the time of citation and for driver's license and car registration violations. (Make sure you have the correct documentation.)​

*Note: The Los Altos Police Department will sign-off fix-it/correctable violations issued by our department or Los Altos residents for free.  If one or both of these apply, you may come to the Los Altos Police Department with the yellow copy of your citation, and we will assist you. 

This service is available 24 hours day/7 days per week. If you come to the police department outside our regular business hours (8:00 a.m. - 5 p.m. Monday through Friday), an officer will be dispatched to the lobby to assist you, so allow for wait time. 

Your traffic ticket may be a “correctable violation” or a “fix-it” ticket. Some common tickets of this kind are:

• Equipment violations: “fix-it” tickets (like a broken tail light, missing front plate or cracked windshield). Driver's license violations — you did not have your license with you when you got your ticket, or it was expired.
• Car registration violations: such as an expired registration or if you did not have it with you when the police asked you for it.

Once you fix the problem, get an authorized person to sign the “Certificate of Correction” part of your ticket located on the reverse side of your yellow citation. Your Citation “Notice to Appear” should have the “yes” box checked below “Correctable Violation.” so any charge marked "Yes", you will be able to correct/fix the violation. Also, the courtesy notice the court may send, will indicate whether you can pay for the violation or if you have to show proof of correction.

It is advisable to check the Santa Clara County Traffic Court website to see if your citation is in the system. Often times you correct your violation much earlier than it takes for court to process the citation. So, hold onto your proof of correction and wait to be notified by court. Once you receive notification, take or mail the signed proof of correction to the court along with your dismissal fee. If you complete this before the deadline on your notice from court, court will then dismiss the relevant charge.