|
Auto Liability Insurance Requirements in Other States |
||
|
|
||
|
By: Janet Kaminski Leduc, Senior Legislative Attorney |
||
|
February 2, 2017 |
| |
2017-R-0050 |
Issue
This report identifies the states that require people to purchase (1) auto liability insurance, (2) uninsured motorist coverage, and (3) underinsured motorist coverage. For the states that require auto liability insurance, it lists the minimum levels of insurance required by law. (Information for this report comes from the Insurance Information Institute’s September 2016 report, Compulsory Auto/Uninsured Motorists.) (This report updates and replaces OLR Report 2013-R-0258.) This report has been updated by OLR Report 2023-R-0090.
Auto Insurance Requirements
Forty-nine states and the District of Columbia require drivers to have auto liability insurance. New Hampshire is the only state that does not require it. Instead, New Hampshire requires drivers to show that they are able to provide sufficient funds in the case of an at-fault accident (i.e., proof of financial responsibility) (see OLR Report 2013-R-0274).
Auto liability insurance generally pays another driver’s medical, vehicle repair, and other costs when the policyholder is the at-fault driver in an accident. It covers (1) bodily injury (BI) per person and per accident and (2) property damage (PD). (Appendix 1 below lists the minimum liability limits required in each jurisdiction.)
Twenty-one jurisdictions require uninsured motorist coverage (UM): Connecticut, District of Columbia, Illinois, Maine, Maryland, Massachusetts, Minnesota, Missouri, Nebraska, New Hampshire, New Jersey, New York, North Carolina, North Dakota, Oregon, South Carolina, South
Dakota, Vermont, Virginia, West Virginia, and Wisconsin. UM compensates policyholders when another driver who is at fault for the accident (1) has no auto liability insurance or (2) is a hit-and-run driver.
Twelve states require underinsured motorist coverage (UIM): Connecticut, Illinois, Maryland, Minnesota, Nebraska, New Jersey, North Carolina, North Dakota, Oregon, South Dakota, Vermont, and Virginia. UIM compensates a policyholder when the at-fault driver has an insufficient amount of auto liability insurance.
Appendix 1: Auto Insurance Requirements by State
|
State |
Insurance Required |
Minimum Auto Liability Limits (in thousands of $) |
|
Alabama |
Bodily injury and property damage liability (BI & PD) |
25/50/25
The first number refers to BI liability limit for one person injured in an accident ($25,000). The second number refers to BI liability limit for all persons injured in an accident ($50,000). The third number refers to the PD liability limit ($25,000). |
|
Alaska |
BI & PD |
50/100/25 |
|
Arizona |
BI & PD |
15/30/10 |
|
Arkansas |
BI & PD, Personal Injury Protection (PIP)
(PIP is mandatory in no-fault states and generally covers medical, rehabilitation, loss of earnings, and funeral expenses.) |
25/50/25 |
|
California |
BI & PD |
15/30/5
(Low-cost policy limits for low-income drivers in the California Automobile Assigned Risk Plan are 10/20/3.) |
|
Colorado |
BI & PD |
25/50/15 |
|
Connecticut |
BI & PD, UM, UIM |
20/40/10 |
|
Delaware |
BI & PD, PIP |
15/30/10 |
|
District of Columbia |
BI & PD, PIP, UM |
25/50/10 |
|
Florida |
PD, PIP |
10/20/10 |
|
Georgia |
BI & PD |
25/50/25 |
|
Hawaii |
BI & PD, PIP |
20/40/10 |
|
Idaho |
BI & PD |
25/50/15 |
|
Illinois |
BI & PD, UM, UIM |
25/50/20 |
|
Indiana |
BI & PD |
25/50/10 |
|
Iowa |
BI & PD |
20/40/15 |
|
Kansas |
BI & PD, PIP |
25/50/25 |
|
Kentucky |
BI & PD, PIP |
25/50/10 |
|
State |
Insurance Required |
Minimum Auto Liability Limits (in thousands of $) |
|
Louisiana |
BI & PD |
15/30/25 |
|
Maine |
BI & PD, UM |
50/100/25 |
|
Maryland |
BI & PD, PIP, UM, UIM |
30/60/15 |
|
Massachusetts |
BI & PD, PIP, UM |
20/40/5 |
|
Michigan |
BI & PD, PIP |
20/40/10 |
|
Minnesota |
BI & PD, PIP, UM, UIM |
30/60/10 |
|
Mississippi |
BI & PD |
25/50/25 |
|
Missouri |
BI & PD, UM |
25/50/10 |
|
Montana |
BI & PD |
25/50/20 |
|
Nebraska |
BI & PD, UM, UIM |
25/50/25 |
|
Nevada |
BI & PD |
15/30/10 |
|
New Hampshire |
Financial Responsibility only (liability insurance is not mandatory), UM |
25/50/25
|
|
New Jersey |
BI & PD, PIP, UM, UIM |
15/30/5
(Optional basic policy limits are 10/10/5 without UM and UIM.) |
|
New Mexico |
BI & PD |
25/50/10 |
|
New York |
BI & PD, PIP, UM |
25/50/10
(In addition, policyholders must have 50/100 for wrongful death coverage.) |
|
North Carolina |
BI & PD, UM, UIM |
30/60/25 |
|
North Dakota |
BI & PD, PIP, UM, UIM |
25/50/25 |
|
Ohio |
BI & PD |
25/50/25 |
|
Oklahoma |
BI & PD |
25/50/25 |
|
Oregon |
BI & PD, PIP, UM, UIM |
25/50/20 |
|
Pennsylvania |
BI & PD, PIP |
15/30/5 |
|
Rhode Island |
BI & PD |
25/50/25 |
|
South Carolina |
BI & PD, UM |
25/50/25 |
|
South Dakota |
BI & PD,UM, UIM |
25/50/25 |
|
Tennessee |
BI & PD |
25/50/15 |
|
Texas |
BI & PD |
30/60/25 |
|
Utah |
BI & PD, PIP |
25/65/15 |
|
Vermont |
BI & PD, UM, UIM |
25/50/10 |
|
Virginia |
BI & PD*, UM, UIM
(*compulsory to buy insurance or pay an Uninsured Motorists Vehicle fee to the Department of Motor Vehicles) |
25/50/20 |
|
Washington |
BI & PD |
25/50/10 |
|
West Virginia |
BI & PD, UM |
25/50/25 |
|
Wisconsin |
BI & PD, UM |
25/50/10 |
|
Wyoming |
BI & PD |
25/50/20 |
Source: Insurance Information Institute
JKL:cmg