What California Auto Insurance Requirements Mean to You

All states carry specific requirements in what they require out of drivers to carry in forms of auto insurance.  California auto insurance requirements, mandated by California state law, require all owners of automobiles to carry insurance covering bodily injury and property damage.  Bodily injury coverage must be a minimum of $15,000 per person injured and $30,000 for all people injured per incident.  Property damage under California state law for auto insurance must be a minimum of $5000 per incident covering damage to property or person.  Both these are state mandated and failure to show proof of coverage will result in ticketing and fines. 

In January 2006, California State law ruled that all insurance companies are required to report to the Department of Motor Vehicle (DMV) all insurance status information regarding use of any privately owned or used vehicle.  California law enforcement and courts have full access to all DMV records as of July 2006 that enables them to look up in an instant if any vehicle registered in the state of California is properly insured.  If an owner cancels their liability insurance or if insurance provider has not disclosed to the DMV proof of coverage on your vehicle, or if a auto owner falsely reports California insurance coverage, the auto owners registration is subject to suspension as of October 2006. 

Some may feel this is taking insurance to the extreme but if looking at the logistics of the laws ensures other drivers on the roadways of California that fellow drivers are insured with at least California State law required minimal insurance limits and leaves the hassles out of your hand of providing insurance required proof at times of registration renewal.  State law still requires motorist to carry in their vehicle proof of coverage even though proof of coverage is available at the Department of Motor Vehicles. 

California State Law does not require motorist to carry Personal Injury Protection (PIP), No-Fault, Uninsured Motorist, Under insured Motorist, Collision, or Comprehensive coverage, however, all can be optional purchases by a cautious driver.  California goes by a Tort system that means any motorist found at fault for an accident and their insurance company is held liable for all damages incurred.  For this reason many motorist elect to add optional insurance coverage in the case of such incidents.  

California auto insurance requirements do not need to scare you from getting great deals on coverage. QuoteScout.com can quickly get you quotes from various competing insurance companies and help insure that you have the proper California auto insurance requirements in a few simple keystrokes.  You can rest assured that once you find the best valued policy for you that your coverage will be reported electronically to the DMV and you can receive proof of insurance the very same day.

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