While you may not like having to pay your car insurance bill every month, not having car insurance could leave you in a much worse position. If you’re really serious about not paying all that money, you could move to one of the two states that do not require car insurance. Before you pack your bags though, understand what these states do require as far as protection after a car accident. Afterall, nothing is free.
Car Insurance is Required in Most States
In almost every state you are required to carry at least a minimum level of car insurance on your vehicle. While you can forgo coverage for yourself, generally, you must carry some type of liability coverage that will pay for damage to other vehicles and passengers in the case of an accident. Also, many states also require coverage for underinsured and non-insured drivers that are at-fault for an accident that causes damage to your vehicle, property, or injuries to you or your passengers.
This is how most states work. But, a handful of states handle the financial responsibility for car accidents differently.
States that Do Not Require Car Insurance
Only two U.S. states do not require drivers to carry a liability auto insurance policy: New Hampshire and Virginia. And although these states do not handle car insurance requirements in the typical way, they still require that owners and drivers of cars be held financially responsible for accidents they cause.
Let’s look at how these two states handle this.
New Hampshire
While New Hampshire does not require car insurance, it does require that you be able to cover the cost of damages and injuries sustained in an accident caused by you. In practice, however, unless you have lots of savings, this means you probably need to buy car insurance.
Virginia
Virginia also does not require specific auto insurance coverage, except for uninsured motorist protection. This means that if someone else causes and accident and they do not have coverage, your policy will cover the costs of the accident. In Virginia, if you don’t want to carry auto insurance you can pay a $500 with your registration or renewal, but you are responsible for any costs associated with an accident you cause.
If you want to completely avoid having to pay monthly premiums for car insurance, you might consider moving to one of these states. But you should weight carefully the costs savings versus the risk you are putting yourself in.
If you have an accident, it can actually be more of a hassle to not have car insurance. Why put yourself at risk? You can use the InsuranceWins form to quickly and easily receive auto insurance quotes after entering some basic information. Give it a try now and get yourself, and your family, protected while you’re on the road.
