Reckless Driving Indiana: Penalties, Points and DSP Options

Updated October 2026 · Reviewed by Billy Forte

The penalties for reckless driving Indiana courts can impose start at a Class C misdemeanor and rise to a Class A misdemeanor, and one school bus version can be a felony. A conviction also adds 6, 8 or 10 points to your BMV record. The Driver Safety Program (DSP) can add a 4-point credit to that record, but it does not erase the conviction or decide the criminal case.

Key Facts

The law: IC 9-21-8-52 lists four reckless acts plus a school bus act. It sets no speed number. See what the law covers.
Levels: Class C at the base, Class B with property damage, Class A with bodily injury. See the penalty levels.
Felonies: only the school bus act under this law, plus a work zone law and other crimes. See felony routes.
Points: 6 for reckless driving, 8 with property damage, 10 with bodily injury. See BMV points.
DSP: a 4-point credit, once every three years; the citation stays in your history. See DSP options.

What the Law Covers

Reckless driving is a crime under IC 9-21-8-52. It applies to a person who drives a vehicle and “recklessly” does one of four things:

Drives at an “unreasonably high rate of speed or at such an unreasonably low rate of speed under the circumstances” that it endangers people or property or blocks traffic.
Passes from the rear on a slope or curve where the view is blocked for “less than five hundred (500) feet ahead.”
“Drives in and out of a line of traffic, except as otherwise permitted.”
Speeds up or “refuses to give one-half (1/2) of the roadway” to a driver who wants to pass.

A fifth act sits in subsection (b). It covers a driver who recklessly passes a stopped school bus while its stop arm is out. For a plain-English walk through each act, see what is reckless driving in Indiana.

No Speed Number in the Law

The statute does not name a speed that counts as reckless. It looks at speed “under the circumstances.” So the facts of the drive matter, not a single number on a radar. Our article on reckless driving speed covers that wording.

How Reckless Driving Indiana Cases Are Graded

The level of the charge depends on what the driving caused. The jail and fine limits come from Indiana’s sentencing laws, IC 35-50-3 for misdemeanors and IC 35-50-2 for felonies. Points are covered in their own section.

Offense	Level	Jail limit	Fine limit
Reckless driving, no injury or damage	Class C misdemeanor	Up to 60 days	Up to $500
Reckless driving that damages another person’s property	Class B misdemeanor	Up to 180 days	Up to $1,000
Reckless driving that causes bodily injury	Class A misdemeanor	Up to 1 year	Up to $5,000
Reckless passing of a stopped school bus, arm out	Class A misdemeanor	Up to 1 year	Up to $5,000
School bus act causing bodily injury	Level 6 felony	6 months to 2.5 years	Up to $10,000
School bus act causing death	Level 5 felony	1 to 6 years	Up to $10,000

These are the outer limits set by law. The judge sets the actual sentence within them, based on the case.

Property Damage Is a Class B Charge

Subsection (c) of the official 2026 Indiana Code makes reckless driving that damages someone else’s property a Class B misdemeanor. That is one step above the base charge.

License Suspension by the Court

The statute gives the court some license tools. They depend on the type of case:

Property damage: the court may recommend a license suspension for a fixed period of up to 1 year.
Bodily injury: the court may recommend a suspension of driving privileges for up to 1 year.
School bus act: the court may suspend driving privileges for 90 days, or for 1 year with a prior offense.

Note the word “may.” These are choices for the court, not automatic results.

When It Can Be a Felony

Basic reckless driving under subsection (a) tops out at a Class A misdemeanor. The felony levels in IC 9-21-8-52 apply only to the school bus act. Two other laws can also reach felony levels:

Work zones: reckless driving near a highway worksite with workers present is a Class A misdemeanor under IC 9-21-8-56. It can be a Level 6 or Level 5 felony in listed cases.
Reckless homicide: recklessly killing another person is a Level 5 felony under IC 35-42-1-5.

Each felony route has its own rules. They are laid out in is reckless driving a felony in Indiana.

A First Offense Has No Separate Tier

The statute has no special level for a first offense. A first charge is graded by the same results as any other. See reckless driving first offense for how that works.

Path of a reckless driving case in Indiana, from the charge to BMV points and the 4-point DSP credit

BMV Points for Reckless Driving

The BMV assigns points under 140 IAC 1-4.5-10. Reckless driving carries 6 points.

It carries 8 with property damage and 10 with bodily injury. Reckless operation in a highway work zone is 8, and passing a school bus with its arm out is 8.

The point rule adds one detail. The BMV does not assume property damage or injury for these points. The higher value applies when the court order or the record sent to the BMV says so.

How Long the Points Stay Active

Points become inactive 24 months after the conviction date, under 140 IAC 1-4.5-4. The violation itself stays on your record, and no rule gives it an end date. The BMV points page says points stay active for two years from the conviction date.

When Points Lead to a Suspension

The BMV counts active points after any DSP credit. At 14 to 18 points, you get a warning notice.

At 20 points within 24 months, the BMV suspends your license for 1 month. Each 2 more points adds a month, up to 12 months at 42 or more.

Here is simple math. A driver with 10 active points from one reckless driving conviction has 6 after a 4-point DSP credit. A driver with 22 active points has 18 after the credit, which is below the suspension level.

Habitual Traffic Violator Rules

The BMV Driver’s Manual also lists reckless driving among the offenses for Habitual Traffic Violator status. Three such judgments within 10 years can make a driver a Habitual Traffic Violator.

That status brings a 10-year suspension. Ask the BMV or an Indiana attorney how this applies to your record.

Reckless Driving vs. a Speeding Ticket

An ordinary speeding ticket is a Class C infraction, which is not a crime. Reckless driving is a misdemeanor, which is a crime.

The two also differ in points, proof and costs. See reckless driving vs. speeding for the full comparison.

Driver Safety Program Options

The DSP is a BMV-approved course of at least 4 hours. It comes in English and Spanish, in a classroom, on DVD or online.

The BMV caps the price of any approved course at $55, and the driver pays. A “defensive driving” class only earns the BMV credit if it is a Driver Safety Program on the BMV’s approved list.

There are three ways a reckless driving case can connect to the DSP.

By Choice

Any Indiana driver can take a DSP. On the BMV DSP page, the BMV says it applies a 4-point credit for successful completion.

The credit can be entered only once every three years. The BMV also says completion “will not remove a citation from your driver history.”

By BMV Order

Under IC 9-30-3-12, the BMV must order a DSP after two traffic misdemeanor convictions, two traffic judgments, or one of each, for moving violations within 12 months. You then have 90 days from the BMV notice, or your driving privileges are suspended. Points alone never trigger this order.

By Court Order

A court may order a DSP as part of a case. The court’s order sets the deadline and the proof steps. Any court may also suspend half of the court costs for a traffic violation when the driver completes a DSP, under IC 9-30-3-12(d).

The court decides the criminal case. Whether it considers a course at all is up to the court. The reckless driving and DSP article goes deeper on that link.

Reckless driving penalties in Indiana at a glance: four levels, jail and fine limits, 6 to 10 points and the DSP credit

How to Check Your Record

You can see your points on the free Viewable Driver Record at myBMV. A certified Official Driver Record costs $4. The BMV’s driver record page explains both.

After a DSP, the provider notifies the BMV. The credit is applied within 7 to 14 business days of that notice. If it does not show, email your certificate to BMVDSP@bmv.IN.gov.

What We Found on the Official Pages

On the official pages we checked on October 26, 2026, the 2026 Indiana Code text of IC 9-21-8-52 listed property damage as a Class B misdemeanor. Its last change came in 2019, with the school bus penalties. The section contained no speed figure.

The BMV DSP page said the credit “may only be applied once every three years.” It also said the course “will not remove a citation from your driver history.”

Common Mistakes to Avoid

Each item comes from Indiana law or a BMV source:

Looking for a speed limit in the law. The reckless driving statute has none.
Assuming every case is a felony. Basic reckless driving stops at a Class A misdemeanor.
Counting 6 points for every case. Property damage means 8 and bodily injury means 10.
Expecting the DSP to erase the charge. It adds a credit; the citation stays.
Taking a second course too soon. The credit is entered once every three years.
Ignoring a BMV order. Missing the 90-day window leads to a suspension.

How Requirements Can Vary

Indiana’s point rules, the 4-point credit and the BMV’s Driver Safety Program order come from state law and BMV rules, and they apply statewide. What you must do still depends on whether you take the course by choice, because of a BMV notice, or under a court order. A court order sets its own deadline and proof steps.

Laws, fees and court practice can change. Check your BMV notice, your court order and the Indiana BMV website for current rules before you enroll or file anything.

Frequently Asked Questions

Is reckless driving a crime in Indiana?

Yes. It is a misdemeanor at every level under subsection (a). The school bus act can be a felony when it causes injury or death.

How many points is reckless driving in Indiana?

The BMV point table gives 6 points. It gives 8 with property damage and 10 with bodily injury.

Can reckless driving lead to jail?

The law allows jail at every level. The limit is 60 days for Class C, 180 days for Class B and 1 year for Class A. The judge decides the actual sentence.

Does the DSP remove a reckless driving conviction?

No. The BMV says completion will not remove a citation from your driver history. It adds a 4-point credit to your point total.

Can a court suspend my license for reckless driving?

A court may recommend a suspension of up to 1 year in property damage or injury cases. In school bus cases, the court may suspend for 90 days, or 1 year with a prior.

Is there a speed that counts as reckless driving?

No. The statute looks at whether the speed was unreasonable under the circumstances. It names no number.

Who can tell me what applies to my case?

Your court, the Indiana BMV or an Indiana attorney. This article explains the general rules only.

Conclusion

Reckless driving in Indiana is a misdemeanor graded by its result, with felony levels only on certain routes. A conviction adds 6, 8 or 10 points, and the DSP can offset 4 of them once every three years.

If a court ordered a course, check that the order allows an online course before you enroll. You can review Driving Logic’s online Indiana Driver Safety Program when you are ready.

Sources

Billy Forte is the owner of Driving Logic, a state-approved driver improvement course provider serving Indiana and other U.S. states.

This article is general information, not legal advice. Indiana BMV rules, court orders, fines and penalties depend on your notice, citation, court and case facts, and they can change. Use official Indiana BMV and court sources, and consult a qualified Indiana attorney for advice about your own case.