Traffic Offences
Red-Light Offences in Ontario
Not every red-light ticket in Ontario works the same way. Whether an officer wrote it or a camera captured it changes the consequences significantly, including whether it adds any demerit points at all.
Officer-issued red-light tickets
When a police officer directly observes a vehicle enter an intersection after the light has turned red and issues a ticket on the spot, the ticket is tied to the identified driver. A conviction carries 3 demerit points, in addition to a fine. Because the officer identifies the driver in person, this version of the offence is treated the same way as most other moving violations that go on a personal driving record.
Red-light-camera tickets work differently
Ontario’s red-light camera program automatically photographs vehicles that enter an intersection after the signal has turned red. Because a camera captures the vehicle rather than confirming who was driving, the resulting ticket is issued to the vehicle’s registered owner, not to a specific, identified driver. As a result, a camera-issued red-light ticket carries a fine only — it does not add any demerit points to anyone’s driving record, even the registered owner’s, because demerit points can only be assigned to an identified driver’s licence.
Why this distinction matters
This is one of the more commonly misunderstood parts of Ontario’s ticketing system, and it’s worth getting right: seeing a red-light camera flash does not automatically mean points are coming. If you receive a notice in the mail rather than a ticket handed to you at the roadside, it was very likely camera-issued, and the fine-only consequence applies. If an officer pulled you over and wrote the ticket in person, the 3-point consequence applies instead. The wording and format of the notice itself — a mailed Provincial Offences Notice referencing a red-light camera location versus a ticket issued at the scene — is generally the clearest way to tell which situation you’re in.
Speed cameras follow the same pattern
The same owner-liability logic applies to Ontario’s automated speed camera program: because a speed camera also can’t confirm who was driving, speed-camera tickets are likewise issued to the registered owner as a fine-only matter, with no demerit points attached. See speeding in Ontario for how officer-issued speeding tickets compare.