So my fiancé got a ticket back in 2008 for not wearing a seatbelt while in the front passenger seat. The driver was pulling out of a gas station when they were pulled over and my fiancé had not put on his seatbelt yet since the driver did not wait for him to put it on. There is a collection agency coming after him now about this ticket since he never paid it - is there anything we can do now about getting this ticket thrown out or reduced? Could we argue that my fiancé was not at fault since the driver did not wait for him to put on his seat belt? My fiancé did not deal with the ticket back in 2008 since he couldn't afford it and thought it was an unfair ticket, the driver of the car has since died.

Either pay it or don't pay it at this point.

The time for defending this charge was 11 years ago.

I don't know how you go about reopening a 11 year old ticket, but you usually have a limited amount of days (15) to file after you learn about a conviction (example: You filed for a trial, never heard back, and were convicted for not attending.) Your fiance has known about this conviction for 11 years. He has decided to ignore it.

You can't file an appeal at this point. Even if you could, he doesn't have a valid argument. You were not wronged in the trial process. He didn't show up. That and you have to pay the fine upfront before you can file for an appeal.

I don't know if your fiance has a license or not because it should be suspended for unpaid fines. If he doesn't, they would have created a temporary license in his name and when and if he applies in the future, they will need him to pay.