The Minimum Amount Allowed by Law

To operate a motor vehicle legally in the state of Texas, drivers are required to have at least a minimum amount of liability coverage. To be in compliance with Texas car insurance requirements the minimum amount of coverage that drivers must have is often referred to as 25/50/25 coverage.

The first two numbers refer to the amount of bodily injury liability coverage that you must have and the third number refers to the amount of property damage liability coverage. With a 25/50/25 plan you must have at least $25,000 in bodily injury liability coverage for each injured person up to a total of $50,000 per accident. You must also have at least $25,000 in property damage liability coverage per accident. On January 1, 2011 the minimum limits will increase to a 30/60/25 plan.

When you purchase auto insurance your insurance provider will send you a card with your insurance information on it. You must be able to produce this card as proof of financial responsibility whenever you have an accident, register your car or renew its registration, obtain or renew your driver's license, or if a law enforcement officer asks to see it.

If you drive without the proper coverage you can be fined $175 to $350 for the first offense and any future offenses could result in fines of $350 to $1000. You may also have your driver's license suspended and your vehicle impounded. If you violate the state's financial responsibility laws and you're driving without a valid driver's license you may be fined up to $2000 and/or spend 180 days in jail. If you do not have the proper coverage, are driving without a license, and cause an accident that results in serious injury or death you may be fined up to $4000 and one year in jail.

As you can see the penalties for not complying with Texas car insurance requirements can be pretty severe. It is very important to have at least the minimum amount of coverage allowed by law. To make sure you're getting the best possible price for the coverage you need you can spend just a few minutes doing some comparison shopping. Prices can vary substantially from one insurance provider to another and taking a few minutes to compare prices could reveal an opportunity to save quite a bit of money.