Is it Illegal to Not Have Insurance?
Insurance prevents you from suffering financial losses when unexpected events happen. There are policies designed to protect your home, health, business, future needs, and your family in the event of your passing. While having adequate coverage is a smart idea, it is generally not legally required. The exception is automobile insurance. Hartman Insurance Agency, Inc. explains what is required by law and the penalties you could face for not having car insurance.
Auto Insurance Requirements in Michigan
The Michigan Department of Insurance and Financial Services advises that as one of a dozen no-fault states, all motorists are required to maintain a mandatory minimum level of auto insurance coverage. This helps reduce lawsuits and offsets the high costs of personal injuries and property damages that often result from crashes. A basic no-fault auto insurance policy in Michigan has three components:
- Personal Injury Protection (PIP): If you are injured in a car accident, this type of coverage offsets your medical expenses and helps to compensate for the lost income you suffer for up to three years after a crash.
- Property Protection Insurance (PPI): This pays up to $1 million for certain types of property damages you cause to others. This includes damage to homes, fences, and parked vehicles. However, it does not cover the cost to repair or replace your own vehicle or others you are involved in a crash with.
- Residual Liability Insurance (RLI) or Bodily Injury and Property Damage Liability: This protects you against being sued if you were injured in a car accident but only applies in limited situations.
Legally required minimum coverage limits pay up to $50,000 for each person hurt or killed due to car accident injuries and up to $100,000 if multiple people are involved. As these amounts typically fail to cover the total cost of a crash, it is strongly recommended that you put additional coverage in place.
Penalties You Could Face for Not Having Auto Insurance in Michigan
Motorists who fail to have auto insurance could be held personally liable for losses others suffer in the event of a crash. Not having the required minimum amount of coverage in place could also subject you to criminal penalties. Under Michigan motor vehicle insurance guidelines, these include:
- Fines of up to $500 if you are caught driving without insurance;
- Up to a one-year jail sentence;
- Suspension of your vehicle registration and confiscation of your license plate and tags;
- Prohibitions against registering additional vehicles while the suspension is in place;
- Payment of fines and court costs associated with your case.
If you provide false evidence of insurance to avoid these penalties, you could face additional fines, jail time, and suspension of your driving privileges.
Contact Our Michigan Auto Insurance Agents Today
Since 1946, Hartman Insurance has been proudly serving the needs of drivers and property owners in the Saline and Ann Arbor area. To ensure you have legally required coverage in place, call or contact our office online and speak to our experienced Michigan insurance agents today.