Ignition interlock in Pennsylvania
In Pennsylvania, if your license is suspended, you may be able to apply for a limited license that lets you drive a vehicle with an ignition interlock during the suspension. PennDOT manages the program and signs off on the devices.
- Agency in charge
- PennDOT
- Companies installing
- 8
- Time on the device
- 1 year once your driving privileges come back (18 months in some repeat cases)
- Usual lease cost
- roughly $1,200 a year, per PennDOT
- Hardship help
- there if your income is under 200% of the poverty level
8 interlock companies in Pennsylvania
| Company | From, a month | Installation | 12 months, install included | Trustpilot |
|---|---|---|---|---|
 LifeSafer | From $50 | $70 to $150 | From $670 | 4.6 of 5 |
 Guardian Interlock | From $50 | $70 to $170 | From $670 | 3.7 of 5 |
 Smart Start | From $59.99 | From $150 | From $869.88 | 4.6 of 5 |
 ALCOLOCK | From $60 | $70 to $150 | From $790 | 2.3 of 5 |
 Intoxalock | $75 to $105Pennsylvania price | Set by each service center | $970 to $1,410install at MADD's typical range | 4.4 of 5 |
 Low Cost Interlock | From $78.76 | $100 to $250, plus $40 set-up | From $1,085.12 | 2.9 of 5 |
 Dräger (RoadGuard Interlock) | Call for a quoteFirst month free | 1.7 of 5 | ||
 Alcohol Detection Systems (ADS) | Call for a quote | 2.4 of 5 | ||
Rows marked "Pennsylvania price" use a price posted for Pennsylvania; the others show each company's national starting price. The 12-month column adds a year of that price, the install price and any set-up fee, or MADD's typical $70 to $150 where no install price is posted.
The Pennsylvania price for Intoxalock comes from its Pennsylvania pricing page. MADD's national range: $70 to $150 to install, then $60 to $80 a month, or $790 to $1,110 for a year.
Pennsylvania ignition interlock law
| Offense | Interlock rule |
|---|---|
| First DUI, lowest tier (general impairment) | Not required |
| First DUI, high BAC | 1 year after restoration |
| Repeat DUI in 10 years | Either 1 year or 18 months, based on the suspension |
| Test refusal | Required |
Where these rules come from: 75 Pa.C.S. 3805.
Driving during your suspension
The Ignition Interlock Limited License came out of Act 33 of 2016. Eligible people suspended for a DUI or for refusing a test can apply to drive an interlock-equipped vehicle during the suspension.
You submit the petition by certified mail along with the application fee and insurance proof. A license center won't take this petition, so don't bring it there.
The license you drive on afterward
After you've met everything PennDOT asks for restoration and your installer confirms the device is in, PennDOT sends you an Ignition Interlock License. Its fee depends on the details of your case, PennDOT says, and it's billed in addition to the restoration fee. PennDOT doesn't publish one flat figure.
What an interlock costs
The yearly lease with an installer runs about $1,200, by PennDOT's estimate. Intoxalock posts monthly rates of $75 to $105 in Pennsylvania, but keep in mind that's a single company's pricing, not something the state charges.
MADD's averages are $70 to $150 to install and $60 to $80 each month. On those numbers, twelve months totals roughly $790 to $1,110. A year and a half lands near $1,150 to $1,590.
If the cost is too much for you
Current PennDOT guidance lets you request a hardship exemption when your income falls under 200% of the poverty level. It doesn't waive the device, but it means you only need one installed, in the one car you drive.
When a test counts as failed
An incident gets recorded if you attempt to start the car at 0.08% or higher and a lower test doesn't come through within 10 minutes. Skipping a retest also counts, and so do missed calibration or maintenance visits.
Those appointments matter for your timeline, since incidents can stretch out how long the device stays in your car.
Removing the device and getting your full license back
Your installer sends PennDOT a form showing no incidents in the last two months (30 days if your case went through ARD, a first-offender program). That form is what gets your full license back.
The law keeps the interlock required until that declaration reaches PennDOT, covering the previous 60 days. Any incident means you stay on the device until you've made it a full 60 days, or 30, without another one.
Driving a car that should have an interlock but doesn't carries its own risk. If you're convicted for it the first time, 12 months get tacked onto your interlock period, counted from the day you were convicted.
Who doesn't need an interlock?
If this is your first offense, you were sentenced in the lowest penalty tier (general impairment), and you have nothing prior on your record, you're exempt. If you've been through this before, or your suspension came from refusing a chemical test, you're not.
For offenses dated 6/30/07 or later, only DUIs from the past 10 years count as priors, and ARD is one of them.
Choosing an installer
Ready to arrange installation? Call us or use the booking form, and we'll pass your request to an interlock company or installer serving Pennsylvania.
The new interlock law
House Bill 1862 was signed by the Governor on July 20, 2026, becoming Act 36 of 2026. Most provisions start 16 months afterward, near the end of November 2027, and a few took effect right away.
The two interlock licenses now in place get replaced by one Ignition Interlock Driver's License. PennDOT would need to issue it within 14 days of receiving a complete application. Act 36 also adds an extra $11 for applying in person at a selected license center, but only once it takes effect, in late 2027.