| Basic Florida Car Insurance Information |
| Written by Jonathan Green | |||
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Getting Florida Car Insurance means that you have to use a local, licensed Florida agent who will help make sure you carry the mandatory minimum level of coverage that is required in the state. You don’t have to stick with the minimum levels of coverage.You can get additional coverage, but you must carry at least $10,000 Personal Injury Protection (PIP) and $10,000 Property Damage Liability (PDL). Florida law requires you to carry this minimum coverage as long as you have a valid Florida tag on the car. You must keep this coverage until the vehicle is licensed in another state or if the vehicle becomes inoperative. The license plate and registration have for the car need to be turned into the Florida Driver’s License Bureau if the car is deemed inoperative. Florida does not allow for any exemptions in the mandated insurance law. The car must be insured as long as it is registered and licensed in the state of Florida. The penalty for not insuring the vehicle can include having driving privileges taken away. Other penalties may include seizing your cars plates, the registration, and even a fine up to $500. You may need to purchase Bodily Injury Liability or BIL coverage if you’ve been convicted of certain traffic offenses like DUIs or have had an accident that is determined to be your fault. Personal Injury Protection (PIP) InsuranceFlorida car PIP coverage is often called No-Fault insurance. When there are medical bills due to injury from a car accident, personal injury protection will pay these bills regardless of who is at fault. PIP insurance pays whether you are the one injured, or if the person injured is a relative living in your home, or if you have a passenger that is injured and this person doesn’t have their own PIP insurance.If you give someone permission to drive your car, this coverage may also cover other licensed drivers. For example, it would cover someone visiting from out of state that does not have a registered car in the state of Florida. Because they don’t have their own PIP insurance, your coverage would protect them. This mandatory insurance will also protect you if you are a walking or riding a bike and are injured as by a motor vehicle. If your children are hurt on the school bus your personal PIP coverage will also cover them and pay their medical bills. Florida minimum PIP coverage limits are $10,000 for the first person and $20,000 for the second and more people in the car. Property Damage Liability (PDL) InsurancePDL is the insurance coverage that will pay for damage caused to someone else’s property from a car accident. If you caused the accident, PDL insurance will pay to fix the property damage. An example of this might be if you backed out of a neighbor’s driveway and wiped out the mailbox or part of their fence. PDL coverage would pay to replace the damaged property, up to the policy limits. Minimum PDL coverage is $10,000 in the state of Florida.Florida car insurance minimums are often referred to as 10/20/10. This stands for $10,000 for first person PIP, $20,000 for the second plus persons PIP, and $10,000 for PDL coverage. Bodily Injury Liability (BIL) InsuranceBIL coverage pays up to policy limits if you cause an accident where someone is seriously injured or dies. This insurance is mandatory in Florida if you’ve ever been convicted of a DUI or have had an accident. This coverage will also pay for a lawyer if you are sued because of the accident.Another benefit of this type of coverage is that it will also cover injuries caused by you or relatives who live with you. This is true even if while driving someone else's vehicle. Penalties For Non-Compliance With Mandated Minimum Florida Car InsuranceIn Florida, the Department of Highway Safety and Motor Vehicles can suspend your driving privilege and seize your vehicle tag and registration for up to three years. Once you provide proof of Florida insurance you can get these items back earlier, but you have to pay a reinstatement fee.The reinstatement fee is $150 for the first offence. This can be raised to as much as $500 for successive violations. Before getting your license and car tags and registration back you must pay this fee and provide proof of current Florida insurance. SummaryYou must carry Car Insurance of Florida on any and all vehicle licensed and registered in the state of Florida. If you have moved from the state but keep your vehicle registered in Florida, you still must maintain and pay for a Florida Car Insurance policy with the mandated minimum coverage.
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