Car insurance is what protects us from having a huge financial burden looming over our heads after our car gets damaged. Every state has their own minimum coverage requirements when it comes to car insurance.
To abide by state laws, you must have certain types of insurance coverage on your car insurance policy. Whether you are new to The Hoosier State or you are shopping around for a new insurance company, you should have an idea of what the minimum coverage limits are.
Keep reading for more information on coverage limits in your state.
What Are The Car Insurance Requirements In Indiana?
All Indiana drivers must be insured before taking their car out for a drive. While there are many different types of car insurance, the state of Indiana requires that all drivers have liability coverage and uninsured motorist coverage on their policy.
Liability coverage is the type of insurance that exists to cover the costs of damages and injuries resulting from an accident that you caused. In Indiana, the minimum requirements for liability insurance coverage are:
- Bodily injury: $25,000 per person per accident.
- Total bodily injury: $50,000 per accident, if multiple people are injured.
- Property damage: $25,000 per accident.
In a perfect world, all drivers on the road would have proper insurance, but unfortunately, this is not always the case. Uninsured motorist coverage is a type of insurance that exists to cover the costs of damages and injuries following an accident that is caused by another driver who is not insured.
This means that if you were hit by an uninsured driver, uninsured motorist coverage would pay for the damages and injuries done to you and your vehicle. Here are the minimum coverage limits for uninsured motorist insurance:
- Uninsured bodily injury: $25,000 per person per accident.
- Uninsured total bodily injury: $50,000 per accident, if multiple people are injured.
- Uninsured property damage: $25,000 per accident.
Note that while uninsured motorist coverage is technically a state requirement, you can opt out of it as long as you have purchased liability insurance. To do this, you must submit a letter in formal writing.
What Are My Other Options For Car Insurance Coverage In Indiana?
Even though the state of Indiana requires all drivers to have liability insurance and uninsured motorist coverage on their policy, many drivers might feel as though this isn’t enough to make them feel safe. If you are looking for additional types of coverage to better fit your needs, there are plenty of other options available. Here are the most common types of optional car insurance coverage:
- Comprehensive coverage: This type of coverage helps you pay for damages to your vehicle that are caused by something other than an accident such as bad weather, theft, fire, or vandalism.
- Collision coverage: This type of coverage exists to help you pay for the cost of damages to your vehicle resulting from a car accident with another driver.
- Rental car reimbursement coverage: If your car ever gets damaged and needs to spend an extensive amount of time in the shop getting repaired, this type of insurance will help provide you with a rental car to use in the meantime.
- Loan/lease gap coverage: This type of coverage is there to make ends meet between the actual cash value of your car and what you currently owe on the car.
- Medical payments coverage: If you are ever involved in an accident that results in death or injury, this type of insurance will help you cover the costs of medical bills and funeral expenses of the covered driver or the passengers.
- Emergency roadside assistance: This type of coverage comes in handy if you ever break down on the side of the road and need a tow, a tire change, or some other type of quick repair.
- Customized parts and equipment: Many traditional types of car insurance will not cover parts that have been customized or altered from its original manufacture. If you are someone who likes to spruce up your vehicle, this type of insurance will help cover the parts of the car you have changed.
What Is The Certificate Of Compliance?
The Indiana Bureau of Motor Vehicles (BMV) has what is called The Certificate of Compliance, which exists to provide assurance that you have met your financial responsibility. There are a few situations in which a driver would be required to have their insurance company file a Certificate of Compliance including:
- The BMV finds out that you have been involved in an accident.
- You have received three moving traffic violations within a year.
- You have committed a severe traffic violation.
- You committed a traffic violation after having your license suspended due to failure to provide proof of insurance.
If you have found yourself in any of the above scenarios, you will receive a request for proof of insurance in the mail from the Indiana BMV. Once this happens, you will need to have your insurance company file the certificate with the BMV to prove that you were insured when the incident occurred.
The Certificate of Compliance must be filed electronically within 90 days of the date that you received the letter from the BMV. Failure to submit the certificate within the allotted time period could result in your license being suspended.
What Are The Penalties For Insurance Violations In Indiana?
The state of Indiana requires all drivers to have the minimum coverage requirements to drive legally. Failure to be properly insured can lead to you losing your driving privileges from anywhere between 90 days and 1 year.
If you were caught driving without insurance and end up with a suspended license, you will be required to file a form SR-22, which serves as proof of future financial responsibility once your driver’s license gets reinstated. Once this form is filed by your insurance company, you must keep your SR-22 for at least three years.
Keep in mind that getting caught driving without car insurance in the state of Indiana can land you a spot on an uninsured driver database called the Previously Uninsured Motorist Registry (PUMR) for five years. Once you’ve been placed in this database, you may be randomly selected to show proof of financial responsibility at any given time.
How can I get car insurance if I have a poor driving record?
The insurance industry relies heavily on their ability to assess risk. If you have a poor driving record due to too many accidents or traffic violations, you will likely be viewed as “high-risk” by most insurers. Being viewed as a high-risk driver can make it difficult to find an insurance company to cover you.
Because Indiana requires all drivers to be covered, your next bet would be to apply for insurance through the Indiana Automobile Insurance Plan. You can do this through any licensed insurance agent in the state of Indiana.