ALR Hearing

ALR hearing is the civil part of the DWI arrest. When a DWI charge is filed, this civil case is initiated and pertains to suspension of the driver’s license. A DWI charge causes this civil case. The Administrative License Revocation Hearing, or ALR hearing, is an important step in keeping your license from being suspended.

For strong representation and to get maximum benefit from the ALR hearing, you need the services of an experienced Dallas DWI lawyer. Once your DWI attorney makes a timely request for an ALR hearing, no suspension can be imposed against you until the Department of Public Safety provides proof of the following:

1. The stopping or arrest of the driver was based on reasonable suspicion.
2. The driver was driving or in actual physical control of a motor vehicle in a public place while intoxicated.
3. The driver was placed under arrest and was offered an opportunity to submit a specimen of breadth or blood. The driver was also explained both orally and in writing, about the consequences of either refusing or failing the breadth or blood test.
4. The driver refused to give a specimen after the DWI arrest on the request of an officer, OR, that the driver failed a breadth or blood test by registering an alcohol concentration of 0.08 or greater over 100ml of blood or 210 liter of breadth.

For a person who is 21 years old or older arrested for a DWI charge, the penalties are:

• FOR 21 YEARS OR OLDER
• For a Refusal to take a breadth or blood alcohol test: 180 days
• For a Failure to pass a breadth or blood alcohol test: 90 days
• WITH A PRIOR ALCOHOL OR DRUG CONTACT WITHIN 10 YEARS
• For a Refusal to take a breadth or blood alcohol test: 2 years
• For a Failure to pass a breadth or blood alcohol test: 1 year

If no suspension is imposed in an ALR hearing, the Department of Public Safety will return your Texas driver’s license.

If a suspension is ordered after a DWI arrest, either automatically or after the ALR hearing, you must submit a $125 reinstatement fee to Texas Department of Public Safety before the license will be reinstated.

According to our Dallas DWI lawyers, the reinstatement fee should be sent to the Texas Department of Public Safety as soon as you learn about the issuance of the suspension. It is advised not to wait until the 60th or 90th day to submit your reinstatement fee because that can prolong the reinstatement of your driver’s license.

You have to submit your $125 driver’s license reinstatement fee for your blood/breadth test refusal or failure to the Texas Department of Public Safety. You should send this fee in form of money order, personal checks, or cashier’s check, and send by certified mail to:

Driver Improvement and Control - Texas Department of Public Safety
P.O. Box 15999
Austin, Texas 78761-5999

Our expert DWI lawyers and legal staff are here to help you with any questions you have regarding the license reinstatement fee to Texas Department of Public Safety.