If you live in the USA and you’re a driver – you certainly know how inconvenient it can be if you face a DUI charge. However, to what extent this kind of violation can influence your life, and will a DUI show up when someone, like a potential employer, does a background check on you? Read all about it in the text that follows.
What Does DUI Refer To?
When we look at the situation, we can say that DUI is the most common criminal offense worldwide and also in the USA. However, while in most European countries, driving while intoxicated can lead to the suspension of your driver’s license for a certain period, in America, it is a much more serious offense.
So many drivers, without any previous traffic violations, are often arrested for DUI – and all of a sudden, our life can change due to a situation from which it is not so easy to get out. This type of offense can pull up some serious outcomes that can last for a long time. Most drivers in the USA already know they will be facing consequences such as driver’s license suspension, paying penalties and fees, etc.
However, far more rigorous measures and a system of penalties are present today – and you can count on very high insurance payments, community work service determined by the court, drunk driving educational classes, or even prison sentences.
How Does a DUI Conviction Further Affect Your Life?
Unfortunately, a DUI charge or even worse, a conviction will cause significant upheavals, both in your life and in the lives of others. Even after finishing with all the legal obligations and payments – a conviction on your personal record for driving under the influence will probably take a toll on your life and ruin the chances that await you, as well as your sense of security and peace of mind. Learning about how driving under the influence of alcohol or drugs can affect your life is a significant step in protecting others and yourself – and building your future in a good way.
But even though most drivers already know all this – it still happens to us. We should seriously think about that because due to one situation in which we have loosened up a little too much or had a drink – the consequences we will suffer will stay for a long time. Therefore, make sure that you do not find yourself in this situation at all.
DUI And A Background Check Up
OK, what happened – happened. You have a DUI charge, and after all, you want to move on with your life. However, this thing seems to follow you everywhere like a shadow. The question that people ask most often is whether a DUI is visible when doing a background check-up. Unfortunately, for all of you who have a DUI charge – we have to say YES, it is visible.
Namely, this kind of accusation very often results in problems in your further functioning in life. Such an offense can harm your career – and if you have an official conviction, it makes things even worse. Namely, when hiring, most employers will do a background check, and when they see your accusations or conviction for DUI – there is a high probability that they will exclude you from the hiring process. Although it may sound too harsh or unfair to some of you – things are simply going that way.
Therefore, many who have encountered this problem wonder if it is possible to remove DUI charges from their record.
Must A DUI Always Show Up On Your Record?
A charge of this type of criminal offense usually stays on your record for up to ten years. Any fines or fees you had to pay due to this violation will also appear in your record. However, the Minneapolis DWI Attorney claims that there are certain exceptions, that is, situations in which the DUI does not have to be visible during the check-up.
Namely, it sometimes happens that such a violation can be treated as a traffic offense – but whether it will appear on your record or not, you can find out only if you hire a lawyer from this legal area. Also, if something like that appears in your background check-up – with the help of a good lawyer, you can take certain steps to erase such a violation from your record. Here, we are primarily referring to the process in which those accused of DUI under certain circumstances can seal the file related to this type of conviction.
After that, your indictment or conviction will not appear on your record. Of course, you cannot do this alone and without using legal means – so the help of a lawyer is essential.
Consequences Of A DUI
Such an accusation will not burden you only in terms of employment. Often, such checks can harm students in the process of application or admission to the faculty, receiving a scholarship, or similar. Also, if you are renting a residential space, know that landlords always check the candidates to whom they will rent a house.
Therefore, if you have such an accusation in your file – you must know this will probably complicate the situation. Also, what people with this offense regularly face are high auto insurance rates. Moreover, in addition to such high insurance rates, it also happens that insurance companies cancel contracts with such clients.
Of course, this can also have an impact on interpersonal relationships, both within the family and circle of friends – as well as among colleagues and business associates.
Conclusion
In the end, we can say that an arrest for driving under the influence of alcohol or a conviction on the same basis generally has major consequences that sometimes last for years. However, you can avoid them by knowing that you should never get into a vehicle when you have had too much to drink.
In this way, you will protect your life and the lives of other people. Also, if it happened to you that your DUI was registered and visible in your file – try to delete it from the file with the help of a good lawyer.