The 12-Point Assignment Happens Immediately
You were convicted of DUI in Colorado yesterday. Before you left the courthouse, 12 points were assigned to your driving record. Your license was suspended for 270 days, and you received paperwork about SR-22 filing requirements and mandatory alcohol education. The points appeared on your record instantly, but they are not what suspended your license.
Colorado assigns 12 points to every DUI conviction under the Driver License Point System. The points are automatic, non-negotiable, and appear on your Division of Motor Vehicles record the day the conviction is entered. But the suspension you are facing — the 270-day revocation period, the SR-22 filing requirement, the mandatory retesting — does not come from the points. It comes from the conviction itself, processed through a separate administrative authority that operates independently of the point system.
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12 points
Every DUI conviction in Colorado adds 12 points to your driving record immediately upon conviction. The points remain on your record for 7 years, but the suspension they trigger is not based on point accumulation — it is triggered by the conviction itself under separate administrative authority.
Colorado Division of Motor Vehicles Driver License Point System
The Suspension Comes From Administrative Action
Colorado operates two parallel suspension systems. The point system suspends drivers who accumulate 12 or more points within 12 months or 18 points within 24 months. The administrative system suspends drivers for specific violations regardless of point total. DUI convictions trigger both systems simultaneously, but the administrative suspension is what controls your license status.
The Colorado Department of Revenue, Division of Motor Vehicles, suspends your license for 270 days under the Compulsory Insurance Law (C.R.S. 42-4-1409) the moment your DUI conviction is recorded. This suspension is independent of your point total. Even if the 12 DUI points were your only points — even if you had a clean record before the conviction — the 270-day suspension applies. The points are assigned as a record-keeping function, but the suspension mechanism is administrative, not point-based.
This distinction matters because it changes what you can contest and what reinstatement requires. Point-based suspensions can sometimes be reduced by completing defensive driving courses or waiting for older points to expire. Administrative DUI suspensions cannot. The 270-day period is fixed. Reinstatement requires completing the full suspension period, paying the reinstatement fee, passing a written and driving retest, completing a state-approved alcohol education course, and maintaining SR-22 insurance for 3 years.
The 12 points mark your record, but they do not control your suspension period. The conviction itself triggers the 270-day revocation through administrative authority, and no point-reduction strategy shortens it.
What the Points Actually Control
If you receive additional moving violations after your DUI conviction, the 12 points combine with new points to determine whether you face a second point-based suspension. Colorado suspends drivers who accumulate 12 or more points in 12 months or 18 or more points in 24 months. A single speeding ticket (4 points) or careless driving charge (4 points) after your DUI pushes you over the 12-month threshold and triggers a second suspension on top of the DUI revocation. This second suspension runs consecutively, not concurrently, extending your total time off the road.
The points also affect your insurance rates independently of the DUI conviction itself. Colorado carriers use your point total as one factor in risk scoring. The 12 DUI points signal high-risk status to every carrier you quote with, even after your suspension ends and you regain your license. Non-standard carriers like Bristol West, Dairyland, and The General price DUI convictions and point totals separately, meaning the 12 points add cost on top of the DUI surcharge. Standard carriers like State Farm and Allstate typically decline to write policies for drivers with 12 points on record, regardless of how long ago the conviction occurred.
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Reinstatement Requires More Than Time
The 270-day suspension period is not the only barrier to getting your license back. Colorado requires you to complete a state-approved Level II Alcohol and Drug Education and Treatment Program before reinstatement. You must pass both a written knowledge test and a driving skills test, even if you held a valid Colorado license for years before the conviction. And you must obtain SR-22 insurance and maintain it for 3 years after reinstatement.
The SR-22 filing is not a type of insurance. It is a certificate your insurance carrier files with the Colorado DMV proving you carry at least the state minimum liability coverage: $25,000 per person for bodily injury, $50,000 per accident for bodily injury, and $15,000 for property damage. Not all carriers file SR-22 certificates. Standard carriers like Auto-Owners and Amica do not write policies for DUI convictions in Colorado. You must obtain coverage from a carrier that writes high-risk policies and files SR-22 certificates electronically with the state.
Carriers that write SR-22 policies in Colorado after DUI include Geico, Progressive, State Farm, Bristol West, Dairyland, The General, Infinity, Kemper, National General, and USAA. Each carrier prices DUI risk differently. Monthly premiums for SR-22 coverage after a Colorado DUI typically range from $301 to $481 per month, 39% to 77% higher than rates for drivers with clean records. The SR-22 requirement lasts 3 years from the date of reinstatement, not from the date of conviction.
Colorado DUI Suspension Period
270 days
Colorado suspends your license for 270 days after a DUI conviction. The suspension begins the day the conviction is entered, not the day you were arrested. Reinstatement requires completing the full 270-day period, passing retests, completing alcohol education, and filing SR-22 insurance.
Colorado Department of Revenue, Division of Motor Vehicles
Probationary License Eligibility
Colorado offers a Probationary Driver License (Red License) that allows limited driving during suspension for certain violations. The probationary license is available to drivers suspended for excessive points, unpaid fines, or other administrative reasons. It is not available to drivers suspended for DUI convictions. Colorado law explicitly excludes DUI offenders from probationary license eligibility.
If your suspension is for DUI, you cannot drive legally during the 270-day period unless you qualify for Early Reinstatement after serving a portion of the suspension and installing an ignition interlock device. Early Reinstatement is a separate program with its own eligibility requirements, fees, and restrictions. It is not the same as a probationary license, and it is not available to all DUI offenders. First-time DUI offenders may be eligible after serving a minimum portion of the suspension period, but eligibility depends on your BAC level at the time of arrest and whether you refused chemical testing.
What To Do Right Now
Your license is suspended for 270 days starting the day of conviction. You cannot drive legally during this period unless you qualify for Early Reinstatement with an ignition interlock device. Start the alcohol education program immediately — it takes weeks to complete, and you cannot reinstate without finishing it. Contact carriers that write SR-22 policies in Colorado and request quotes for non-owner SR-22 coverage if you do not currently own a vehicle, or standard SR-22 coverage if you do. The SR-22 filing must be active before the DMV will reinstate your license.
Do not wait until day 269 to begin the reinstatement process. The education program, the retests, the SR-22 filing, and the reinstatement fee payment all take time to process. The DMV estimates 20 business days to process reinstatement applications once all requirements are met. If you need to drive for work or medical appointments during the suspension period, research Early Reinstatement eligibility and ignition interlock device vendors immediately. Compare SR-22 carriers that write high-risk policies in Colorado and understand what your post-reinstatement insurance will cost before your suspension ends.