Florida Insurance Laws

There are two laws in Florida that center on insurance responsibilities. As a driver, you must deal with these responsibilities because there is little excuse for being uninsured.

Florida is a No-Fault State for Auto Insurance

In Florida, you must purchase no-fault auto insurance before you drive. There are two minimum insurance coverages that are necessary to at a minimum comply with the law.

Penalties if You Don’t Carry Current No-Fault Insurance

When you buy no-fault insurance (PIP and PD), the insurance provider lets the Department of Transportation know. When the insurance is due for renewal and you renew it, you cancel it, the insurer cancels it, or you fail to renew it, then the information gets passed on to the Department. You may then be in breach of the state no-fault law and the Department will contact you to show proof that you have renewed it or have a reason why you haven’t renewed it (e.g., you have canceled your vehicle’s registration). If you fail to do so, your driver’s license and license plate could be suspended for up to three years. Your license and plate can be returned by paying a fine and showing proof of insurance coverage.

In Florida, you will need to show your Insurance I.D. card (provided by your insurer) if asked to do so by a police officer. If you make a false statement or forge an I.D. card you can be charged with a second-degree misdemeanor, punishable by up to 60 days in jail and a $500 fine.

The Financial Responsibility Law

Accidents can happen at any time and even if you think you weren’t responsible for the crash, you, your passengers, if any, anyone else in another vehicle, or a pedestrian, cyclist, or motorcycle rider could be injured. There will more than likely be police officers arriving at the scene and they are likely to ask you to show your driver’s license and proof of insurance coverage.

The Financial Responsibility Law requires you to have sufficient insurance coverage. The insurance requirement is there to provide compensation for anyone else’s injuries or property damage if you are at fault in an accident.

Like no-fault insurance, state law requires you to have a minimum level of coverage, but you may still be liable for much more if the costs of injuries or property damage are much more than that minimum.

The requirements are:

a minimum of $10,000 Bodily Injury Liability (BI);
a minimum of $20,000 BI if two or more people have been injured.

Failure to have the minimum insurance coverage either at the scene of an accident or if you have been convicted of a DUI offense that has triggered a revocation of your license without sufficient insurance will mean that your license and plate will be suspended for at least one year, in the same way as for failure to have no-fault auto insurance cover as mentioned above.

To reinstate that suspension, you will need to purchase more expensive high-risk SR-22 insurance and keep it in effect for three years.

We Can Help You!

If you have an issue with a suspended license, failure to carry insurance, a financial responsibility suspension, or a question regarding these issues, count on “Albert Quirantes, Esq. Criminal DUI & Ticket Lawyers”, 305-644-1800. Schedule your free and non-obligatory defense strategy session today.