Penalties for Driving Without Insurance in Colorado
| type of Offense | License and/or Registration Suspended ? | imprison Time ? | SR-22 Required ? | Maximum Fines & Fees |
| No Proof of Insurance ( Can Prove Coverage ) | No | No | No | dismissed with proof |
| 1st Offense With No Coverage | Yes, license | Community Service | Yes | $ 500 minimal |
| recur Offense ( No Coverage ) | Yes, license | 10 days to 1 class, and/or Community Service | Yes | $ 1,000 minimal |
not having car indemnity and not being able to prove that you have it are two different violations. If you have policy but can not prove it when you get pulled over or at the scene of an accident, you are guilty of an “ administrative misdemeanor, ” exchangeable to a seat-belt tag. Your citation might be dismissed if you can provide the court with proof of valid insurance for the date of the quotation before your court date, assuming the officer could n’t find your policy in the state insurance database on the scenery. Driving without car policy at all is a lot more serious, and the penalties are more hard. In addition to the legal consequences, you can besides expect your car indemnity premium to go up. A single conviction for driving without indemnity raises annual premiums by an modal of 4 %, or $ 60, in Colorado .
What happens if you get into a car accident without policy in Colorado ?
If you get into an accident while driving without indemnity in Colorado, you will be cited and all the penalties for driving without indemnity will apply, no matter who is at demerit. Driving uninsured can make it unmanageable to be compensated for damages if you are not at demerit and can have durable and life-changing consequences if you are at fault. If the accident is your demerit, you ’ ll have to pay for all the damages out of your own pocket. In addition to the legal consequences for driving without policy, you could easily be responsible for tens of thousands of dollars or more in damage to your vehicle, the early driver ’ randomness rectify and hospital bills, and your own medical care. Both the early driver and their indemnity company can sue you and have future wages and savings garnished to pay for damages. You could face mounting debt or even bankruptcy, particularly if the other driver doesn ’ metric ton carry uninsured motorist coverage or personal injury security. even if the accident is not your fault, driving without indemnity leaves you vulnerable to expensive hospital and compensate bills. Colorado is an at-fault state. In at-fault states, the other driver is normally responsible for damage to your car and any aesculapian treatment you may need—assuming the other driver is found completely at-fault. Colorado uses a change relative negligence system, which means you may not be able to recover all the costs associated with the accident if you are found partially responsible for causing it. Driving uninsured doesn ’ thymine negate the other driver ’ s mistake wholly, but you ’ rhenium about surely going to be penalized and unable to recover everything you would be entitled to if you had policy .
You can get car policy in Colorado, evening if you are…
Uninsured: Unless you ’ re a newly licensed driver, having a history of driving without insurance or lapses in coverage is a risk to insurers. To policy companies, it ’ second similar to a badly drive record, which is why drivers who let their policy relapse for 60 days pay about 15 % more than the average premium in Colorado. USAA, State Farm, Nationwide, and Geico tend to have the lowest rates for drivers who want to regain coverage. Driving someone else’s car: It ’ s not illegal to drive person else ’ mho car if you do not have policy, but non-owner car insurance can protect you if you don ’ t have a car but still drive regularly. If you borrow a car from person living in your own home, you should be listed on the car owner ’ second policy. But you may want to explore non-owner coverage if you need to reinstate a driver ’ second license, you rent or borrow cars frequently, or you want to maintain continuous car coverage between vehicles. Geico, State Farm, Nationwide, and The General good places to shop if you need non-driver car insurance. High-Risk: If you ’ re a bad driver who has been denied coverage from traditional indemnity companies, check out Colorado ’ south assigned gamble program. Whether you require an arrogate risk program or calm qualify for bad indemnity from conventional providers, you ’ ll wage more. In Colorado, drivers with just two speeding tickets pay an average of 33 % more on their annual car policy premiums, for exemplar. Depending on your drive record and the seriousness of your infractions, you could pay even more. still, evening though rates may be higher, at least you can drive legally and avoid more penalties .
concluding Thoughts : How to avoid driving without policy in Colorado
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To avoid the penalties of driving without indemnity, shop about for at least $ 25,000 in bodily wound liability coverage, up to $ 50,000 per accident, along with $ 15,000 in liability coverage for property damage of liability coverage from three or more car insurance companies. In Colorado, you can find basic liability car policy for around $ 681 per year if you have a clean repel record. The consequences of driving without policy are ultimately more dearly-won than purchasing minimal car indemnity coverage. No count what your unique needs are, the best way to get accurate quotes and the best prices is to comparison shop class .show less