You’re our first priority. Every time.

We believe everyone should be able to make financial decisions with confidence. And while our site doesn’t feature every company or financial product available on the market, we’re proud that the guidance we offer, the information we provide and the tools we create are objective, independent, straightforward — and free.

So how do we make money? Our partners compensate us. This may influence which products we review and write about (and where those products appear on the site), but it in no way affects our recommendations or advice, which are grounded in thousands of hours of research. Our partners cannot pay us to guarantee favorable reviews of their products or services. Here is a list of our partners.

State Minimum Car Insurance Requirements

Many or all of the products featured here are from our partners who compensate us. This influences which products we write about and where and how the product appears on a page. However, this does not influence our evaluations. Our opinions are our own. Here is a list of our partners and here's how we make money.

Minimum car insurance requirements vary from state to state. This means the car insurance coverages and limits that work for a friend or family member living elsewhere might not be right for you. NerdWallet has assembled minimum requirements by state so you can quickly and easily find how much car insurance you need to drive legally.

Check the table below for minimum coverage requirements in your state (then read on for more detail about each coverage type):

State

Requirements

Alabama

$25,000 bodily injury liability per person $50,000 bodily injury liability per accident $25,000 property damage liability per accident

Alaska

(Car insurance is optional for certain remote residents) $50,000 bodily injury liability per person $100,000 bodily injury liability per accident $25,000 property damage liability per accident

Arizona

$25,000 bodily injury liability per person $50,000 bodily injury liability per accident $15,000 property damage liability per accident

Arkansas

$25,000 bodily injury liability per person $50,000 bodily injury liability per accident $25,000 property damage liability per accident

California

$15,000 bodily injury liability per person $30,000 bodily injury liability per accident $5,000 property damage liability per accident

Colorado

$25,000 bodily injury liability per person $50,000 bodily injury liability per accident $15,000 property damage liability per accident

Connecticut

$25,000 bodily injury liability per person $50,000 bodily injury liability per accident $25,000 property damage liability per accident $25,000 uninsured/underinsured motorist coverage per person $50,000 uninsured/underinsured motorist coverage per accident

Delaware

$25,000 bodily injury liability per person $50,000 bodily injury liability per accident $10,000 property damage liability per accident $15,000 personal injury protection per person $30,000 personal injury protection per accident

Florida

$10,000 property damage liability per accident $10,000 personal injury protection

Georgia

$25,000 bodily injury liability per person $50,000 bodily injury liability per accident $25,000 property damage liability per accident

Hawaii

$20,000 bodily injury liability per person $40,000 bodily injury liability per accident $10,000 property damage liability per accident $10,000 personal injury protection

Idaho

$25,000 bodily injury liability per person $50,000 bodily injury liability per accident $15,000 property damage liability per accident

Illinois

$25,000 bodily injury liability per person $50,000 bodily injury liability per accident $20,000 property damage liability per accident $25,000 uninsured motorist coverage per person $50,000 uninsured motorist coverage per accident

Indiana

$25,000 bodily injury liability per person $50,000 bodily injury liability per accident $25,000 property damage liability per accident

Iowa

$20,000 bodily injury liability per person $40,000 bodily injury liability per accident $15,000 property damage liability per accident

Kansas

$25,000 bodily injury liability per person $50,000 bodily injury liability per accident $25,000 property damage liability per accident $25,000 uninsured/underinsured motorist coverage per person $50,000 uninsured/underinsured motorist coverage per accident Personal injury protection including $4,500 in medical expenses, up to $900 per month for a year for disability or loss of income, $25 per day for in-home services, $2,000 for funeral burial or cremation costs, and $4,500 for rehabilitation Survivors benefits including up to $900 per month for a year for disability or loss of income and $25 per day for in-home services

Kentucky

$25,000 bodily injury liability per person $50,000 bodily injury liability per accident $25,000 property damage liability per accident Or a policy with a single limit of $60,000

Louisiana

$15,000 bodily injury liability per person $30,000 bodily injury liability per accident $25,000 property damage liability per accident

Maine

$50,000 bodily injury liability per person $100,000 bodily injury liability per accident $25,000 property damage liability per accident $50,000 uninsured/underinsured motorist coverage per person $100,000 uninsured/underinsured motorist coverage per accident $2,000 medical payments coverage Or a combined single liability limit of $125,000

Maryland

$30,000 bodily injury liability per person $60,000 bodily injury liability per accident $15,000 property damage liability per accident $30,000 uninsured/underinsured motorist coverage per person $60,000 uninsured/underinsured motorist coverage per accident $15,000 uninsured/underinsured property damage coverage per accident

Massachusetts

$20,000 bodily injury liability per person $40,000 bodily injury liability per accident $5,000 property damage liability per accident $20,000 uninsured motorist coverage per person $40,000 uninsured motorist coverage per accident $8,000 personal injury protection

Michigan

$50,000 bodily injury liability per person $100,000 bodily injury liability per accident $10,000 property damage liability per accident outside Michigan $1 million property protection within Michigan $250,000* personal injury protection

*Lower PIP limits available for certain Medicare and Medicaid recipients.

Minnesota

$30,000 bodily injury liability per person $60,000 bodily injury liability per accident $10,000 property damage liability per accident $25,000 uninsured/underinsured motorist coverage per person $50,000 uninsured/underinsured motorist coverage per accident $40,000 personal injury protection

Mississippi

$25,000 bodily injury liability per person $50,000 bodily injury liability per accident $25,000 property damage liability per accident

Missouri

$25,000 bodily injury liability per person $50,000 bodily injury liability per accident $25,000 property damage liability per accident $25,000 uninsured motorist coverage per person $50,000 uninsured motorist coverage per accident

Montana

$25,000 bodily injury liability per person $50,000 bodily injury liability per accident $20,000 property damage liability per accident

Nebraska

$25,000 bodily injury liability per person $50,000 bodily injury liability per accident $25,000 property damage liability per accident $25,000 uninsured/underinsured motorist coverage per person $50,000 uninsured/underinsured motorist coverage per accident

Nevada

$25,000 bodily injury liability per person $50,000 bodily injury liability per accident $20,000 property damage liability per accident

New Hampshire

$25,000 bodily injury liability per person $50,000 bodily injury liability per accident $25,000 property damage liability per accident $25,000 uninsured/underinsured motorist coverage per person $50,000 uninsured/underinsured motorist coverage per accident $25,000 uninsured/underinsured motorist property damage coverage $1,000 medical payments coverage

New Jersey

$5,000 property damage liability per accident $15,000 personal injury protection

New Mexico

$25,000 bodily injury liability per person $50,000 bodily injury liability per accident $10,000 property damage liability per accident

New York

$25,000 bodily injury liability per person $50,000 bodily injury liability per accident $50,000 liability for death per person $100,000 liability for death per accident $10,000 property damage liability per accident $25,000 uninsured motorist bodily injury coverage per person $50,000 uninsured motorist bodily injury coverage per accident $50,000 personal injury protection

North Carolina

$30,000 bodily injury liability per person $60,000 bodily injury liability per accident $25,000 property damage liability per accident $30,000 uninsured motorist coverage per person $60,000 uninsured motorist coverage per accident $25,000 uninsured motorist property damage coverage per accident

North Dakota

$25,000 bodily injury liability per person $50,000 bodily injury liability per accident $25,000 property damage liability per accident $25,000 uninsured/underinsured motorist coverage per person $50,000 uninsured/underinsured motorist coverage per accident $30,000 personal injury protection

Ohio

$25,000 bodily injury liability per person $50,000 bodily injury liability per accident $25,000 property damage liability per accident

Oklahoma

$25,000 bodily injury liability per person $50,000 bodily injury liability per accident $25,000 property damage liability per accident

Oregon

$25,000 bodily injury liability per person $50,000 bodily injury liability per accident $20,000 property damage liability per accident $25,000 uninsured motorist coverage per person $50,000 uninsured motorist coverage per accident $15,000 personal injury protection

Pennsylvania

$15,000 bodily injury liability per person $30,000 bodily injury liability per accident $5,000 property damage liability per accident $5,000 medical benefits

Rhode Island

$25,000 bodily injury liability per person $50,000 bodily injury liability per accident $25,000 property damage liability per accident

South Carolina

$25,000 bodily injury liability per person $50,000 bodily injury liability per accident $25,000 property damage liability per accident $25,000 uninsured motorist coverage per person $50,000 uninsured motorist coverage per accident $25,000 uninsured motorist property damage coverage

South Dakota

$25,000 bodily injury liability per person $50,000 bodily injury liability per accident $25,000 property damage liability per accident $25,000 uninsured/underinsured motorist coverage per person $50,000 uninsured/underinsured motorist coverage per accident

Tennessee

$25,000 bodily injury liability per person $50,000 bodily injury liability per accident $25,000 property damage liability per accident

Texas

$30,000 bodily injury liability per person $60,000 bodily injury liability per accident $25,000 property damage liability per accident

Utah

$25,000 bodily injury liability per person $65,000 bodily injury liability per accident $15,000 property damage liability per accident $3,000 personal injury protection

Vermont

$25,000 bodily injury liability per person $50,000 bodily injury liability per accident $10,000 property damage liability per accident $50,000 uninsured/underinsured motorist coverage per person $100,000 uninsured/underinsured motorist coverage per accident $10,000 uninsured/underinsured motorist property damage coverage per accident

Virginia

(Minimum limits if a driver purchases car insurance, which is optional. Drivers who don’t purchase insurance pay a $500 fee.) $30,000 bodily injury liability per person $60,000 bodily injury liability per accident $20,000 property damage liability per accident $30,000 uninsured/underinsured motorist coverage per person $60,000 uninsured/underinsured motorist coverage per accident $20,000 uninsured/underinsured motorist coverage per accident

Washington

$25,000 bodily injury liability per person $50,000 bodily injury liability per accident $10,000 property damage liability per accident

Washington, D.C.

$25,000 bodily injury liability per person $50,000 bodily injury liability per accident $10,000 property damage liability per accident $25,000 uninsured motorist coverage per person $50,000 uninsured motorist coverage per accident $5,000 uninsured motorist property damage coverage per accident

West Virginia

$25,000 bodily injury liability per person $50,000 bodily injury liability per accident $25,000 property damage liability per accident $25,000 uninsured motorist coverage per person $50,000 uninsured motorist coverage per accident $25,000 uninsured motorist property damage coverage

Wisconsin

$25,000 bodily injury liability per person $50,000 bodily injury liability per accident $10,000 property damage liability per accident $25,000 uninsured motorist coverage per person $50,000 uninsured motorist coverage per accident

Wyoming

$25,000 bodily injury liability per person $50,000 bodily injury liability per accident $20,000 property damage liability per accident

» MORE: What is auto insurance?

Understanding your required coverages

Liability insurance: Every state except Virginia requires at least a minimum amount of liability insurance. This coverage helps pay for any damage you cause to another driver, their passengers or any property, such as their car.

There are three components to car insurance liability coverage:

Bodily injury coverage per person

Bodily injury coverage per accident

Property damage coverage per accident

These limits are usually expressed as a series of numbers, such as 15/30/10. Let's say you collide with a van carrying several passengers. With those hypothetical limits, your liability coverage would pay up to $15,000 per person for bodily injuries caused to people in the van but no more than $30,000 in total bodily injury costs for the incident. You'd also be covered for up to $10,000 in property damage.

Most experts recommend carrying more than the minimum liability insurance coverage. If you were at fault in a bad accident, you could easily be on the hook for more than $30,000 in medical bills alone, not to mention potential damages in a lawsuit. Insurance agents typically recommend liability coverage of 100/300/50 for a "full coverage" policy. It's also worth considering an umbrella policy for more protection if you have a high net worth and a lot of assets.

» MORE: Bodily injury liability coverage: What it is and how it works

Uninsured/Underinsured Motorist Coverage: UM/UIM are required in almost half of states. These kick in to help with the cost of injuries to you or your passengers if you're ever struck by a driver who doesn't have enough, or any, car insurance. A few states also require uninsured/underinsured motorist property damage coverage to cover property damage in these cases. The minimum limits for UM/UIM are often similar or identical to your state's liability insurance limits.

Personal injury protection: Roughly 20% of states require PIP, which covers medical expenses for the insured and their passengers if they’re in an accident, regardless of fault. PIP may also cover lost wages or other benefits that health insurance doesn't. PIP is often associated with “no-fault” states, where each party is responsible for his or her own damages in an accident.

Medical Payments Coverage: Medical payments coverage, like PIP, goes toward your medical expenses if you’re injured in an accident. Unlike PIP, it doesn’t cover additional benefits, such as lost wages. Even though medical payments coverage usually has a low limit, it may be helpful for those with high health insurance deductibles. This coverage is required in Maine, New Hampshire and Pennsylvania.

Exceptions to state minimum car insurance requirements

Not all states require drivers to have insurance. Some states provide (often unpublicized) alternatives, including:

Proof of financial responsibility: Some states, like Arizona, allow drivers to provide a bond, certificate of deposit or cash to the department of motor vehicles in place of the state minimum car insurance. The payment amount varies widely from state to state and can be as little as $30,000 or more than $100,000.

Uninsured motorist registration: In places such as Virginia, residents with clean records have the option to register as uninsured motorists for an annual fee. To be clear, this doesn't replace car insurance. It simply lets drivers operate a vehicle without coverage. And although this option costs less than auto insurance, it leaves drivers with no coverage whatsoever in an accident.

For most drivers, it’s simply easier to meet the state minimum car insurance requirements than to deal with alternative insurance — and it’s certainly less risky.

Optional coverages

While meeting state minimum car insurance requirements is important, you don't have to stop there. In fact, the bare minimum won’t be enough in most cases. For example, no state requires collision and comprehensive coverage. Yet these are two common add-ons many drivers rely on to help with car thefts, animal collisions and more.

» MORE: What does car insurance cover

In fact, if you lease your car or have borrowed money to buy it, your lender probably will require you to buy collision and comprehensive coverage.

There are many additional optional coverages available, such as rental reimbursement, which pays for a rental car if your car is in the shop after a covered claim, roadside assistance or towing insurance and full-glass coverage, which pays to repair or replace broken window glass, without a deductible.

By shopping around, you can afford more than the minimum required insurance without breaking the bank.

» MORE: Compare car insurance rates

On a similar note...

Instantly compare top auto insurance companies.

Compare Car Insurance Rates

Read more

What Is Full Coverage Car Insurance?

Read more

Cheap Car Insurance

Read more

Download the app

Disclaimer: NerdWallet strives to keep its information accurate and up to date. This information may be different than what you see when you visit a financial institution, service provider or specific product’s site. All financial products, shopping products and services are presented without warranty. When evaluating offers, please review the financial institution’s Terms and Conditions. Pre-qualified offers are not binding. If you find discrepancies with your credit score or information from your credit report, please contact TransUnion® directly.

NerdUp by NerdWallet credit card: NerdWallet is not a bank. Bank services provided by Evolve Bank & Trust, member FDIC. The NerdUp by NerdWallet Credit Card is issued by Evolve Bank & Trust pursuant to a license from MasterCard International Inc.

Impact on your credit may vary, as credit scores are independently determined by credit bureaus based on a number of factors including the financial decisions you make with other financial services organizations.

NerdWallet Compare, Inc. NMLS ID# 1617539

NMLS Consumer Access|Licenses and Disclosures

California: California Finance Lender loans arranged pursuant to Department of Financial Protection and Innovation Finance Lenders License #60DBO-74812

Insurance Services offered through NerdWallet Insurance Services, Inc. (CA resident license no.OK92033)  Insurance Licenses

NerdWallet™ | 55 Hawthorne St. - 10th Floor, San Francisco, CA 94105