Denton Car Insurance
If you reside in the City of Denton, you are required by law to comply with the auto insurance laws within the state of Texas. Each and every state has its own auto insurance laws and requirements. While some states will allow vehicle owners to deposit cash or file a surety bond with the Department of Motor Vehicles to prove that they are financially responsible for the damages that they cause, Texas operates under a fault-based system and requires every owner to carry insurance to legally drive.
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Because insurance is a required product it is important for consumers to understand the Denton car insurance requirements, the penalties for driving without insurance, and what they will need to get an accurate quote. Read this guide to auto insurance in Texas, and get the answers to all of these important questions.
What is a fault-based system?
Before you can truly understand why auto insurance is required, you need to understand what it means to say that Texas operates under a fault-based system. All but 12 states in the nation operate under a fault-based tort system.
The driver is responsible for paying for the medical expenses and damages that they cause in an auto accident, and they must also compensate the victim for damages like pain and suffering and lost wages.
Instead of paying for these expenses out-of-pocket, your insurer will pay for the damages up to the limits of liability that you carry. This is why it is so important that all residents in Denton and all throughout Texas comply with the compulsory auto insurance laws. Not only will you have peace of mind every time you get behind the wheel, you will also be driving with financial protection just in case you make a bad decision or fail to drive defensively.
How much insurance must you carry in Denton?
Auto insurance laws are enforced throughout the entire state of Texas and not just the City of Denton. This is why you should familiarize yourself with the Texas Insurance Code before you begin your mission to find affordable coverage.
The legislative code states that all drivers must carry at least liability coverage before they get behind the wheel.
This means that before you visit your local DMV branch in Denton, you must have active coverage on the car. This coverage must be carried continuously with no lapses to avoid penalties. Here is a brief breakdown of what liability coverage will protect you from and how much coverage you must have:
- Bodily Injury Liability
Bodily Injury Liability, often referred to as BI on a policy, covers you and your assets if you are liable for injuries to a third-party driver or their passengers. This coverage will also cover a household member or a permissive user when they are driving the covered vehicle. Limits are written on a per person and a per accident basis. The per person limit will pay to cover injuries or provide death benefits for a single person. The accident limit is the total amount that will be paid out for a single event. In Texas, all drivers must carry: BI: $30,000 per person up to $60,000 per accident (written 30/60)
Just because you must carry 30/60 on your policy does not mean that you are adequately covered. One of the most common mistakes a person can make is to buy only what is legally required. While you cannot predict accidents, it is wise to have at least $100,000 per person, up to $300,000 per accident in BI.
- Property Damage Liability
Not only do you need insurance to pay for medical bills, you also need insurance to pay for the property damage that you cause in an accident that you are liability for. This form of third-party liability coverage, which is written as PD, will pay for the property that is owned by others and not yourself. The coverage will pay up to the limit for damaged cars, buildings, fences or other property as well. Based on the Insurance Code in Texas, you must carry: PD: $25,000 per accident
- Uninsured Motorist (UM)
In the state of Texas as a whole, about 13.3 percent of drivers are not insured. This means that statewide 1 in 7 drivers do not have liability coverage. In the City of Denton alone, about 9.5 percent of drivers do not comply with the insurance laws. This puts you at risk when you drive in your own city of residence and in surrounding cities.
Because the state has a high rate of uninsured drivers, the legislature requires that all insurers offer policyholders the option to purchase uninsured motorist coverage.
This coverage will cover your own bodily injury if someone hits you and does not have insurance. While you must be offered the coverage, you can choose to reject it in writing if you so please. You may only carry limits of UM up to the limits of Bodily Injury that you carry.
What are the consequences for driving without insurance in Denton?
To legally drive a vehicle, you must have insurance. Choosing to disobey this law is a misdemeanor if you are cited by a law enforcement officer. You will pay the consequences for driving without insurance at some point even if you are not cited by Denton police. Read on, and learn about some of the penalties for driving without insurance:
Consequences When You Are Cited By a Police Officer
It is standard protocol for law enforcement to ask you for your driver license, registration and proof of insurance when you are pulled over. If you do not have active insurance, you will be cited for whatever traffic violation you were pulled over for and also for failure to carry insurance. The penalties that you may be assessed include:
- Mandatory order to appear in court
- Misdemeanor conviction
- Fine of $175 to $350 for first offense
- Fine of $350 to $1000 for subsequent offenses
- Up to 180 days in jail (up to 1 year in jail if involved in an accident with injury)
- Suspension of driver license and license plates
Consequences When the DMV is Notified
Many people are not aware of the fact that they may pay the consequences for driving without insurance even when they are not cited. In the state of Texas, due to the fact that there are so many uninsured drivers, the Department of Motor Vehicles has an auto insurance verification system. This is an electronic system that allows insurers to report policy cancellations real-time so that the department knows.
All insurers in Denton and throughout the state are required by law to notify the DMV when a policy cancels.
If the DMV is notified, you are sent a notice that you must respond to. If you fail to provide proof of coverage with no lapses you may be ordered to:
- Pay fines and reinstatement fees to reinstate your registration
- File an SR-22 to prove financial responsibility
- Serve a period of time with a suspended license
- Pay for vehicle impound fees if caught with expired plates
The costs of driving without the basic coverage that are required in Texas are much higher than the costs of buying coverage. Not only are the penalties expensive, you can ruin your record with a conviction. This could later affect your ability to get a professional license or to land a job.
How to Get an Accurate Quote for Denton Car Insurance
Now that you know the law, it is time to begin your search for the best policy. When you are shopping for insurance, it is best to compare the rates through several insurers licensed to do business in Texas. You can check for a generic rate comparison by visiting the Department of Insurance site directly, but ultimately you will need to retrieve your own quotes by proving your personal information with the insurer.
After you have researched each insurer, you can start the quoting process. This will be the only way to get accurate quotes that are based off of the risk that you present. Here is a list of the information that you will need to provide:
- Personal information (name, date of birth, driver license number)
- Vehicle information (VIN, odometer, coverage limits, anti-theft)
- Driving record details (dates of convictions or at-fault accidents)
- List of current policy coverage types of and limits
- Lessor or lender information
- Driver training information or Grades for discounts
- Estimated annual mileage and usage for each vehicle
The easiest way to shop around for Denton car insurance is to use an advanced online rate comparison tool. By using this tool, you can provide your personal information just once and then review the rates through several different insurers at once. Just be sure that you provide as much accurate information as possible, and select coverage options that will provide protection while driving.
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