Florida Car Insurance

Florida is a no-fault PIP state. Every vehicle with a current Florida registration must carry at least $10,000 in Personal Injury Protection (Fla. Stat. § 627.736) and $10,000 in Property Damage Liability (Chapter 324)¹⁶. Florida is unusual in that Bodily Injury Liability is not required at the state minimum by default for private passenger vehicles; BI becomes mandatory only for specific statutory triggers, including certain crashes under the Financial Responsibility Law and a DUI conviction under Fla. Stat. § 324.023 (FR-44). PIP medical benefits apply only if the injured person receives initial services within 14 days after the crash¹. This page owns the Florida-specific rules; the consumer journey (after a DUI, a lapse, a total loss, or a move) lives on our situation guides.

Finding cheap Florida car insurance in practice

Shoppers searching for "cheap car insurance Florida" and "Florida auto insurance quotes" are asking a question that is structurally different from the question in most other states. Three Florida-specific facts explain why:

• Florida is a no-fault PIP state. Every registered vehicle must carry at least $10,000 in Personal Injury Protection and $10,000 in Property Damage Liability¹. Bodily Injury Liability (BI) is not required at registration for most drivers, which is why the Florida floor looks cheaper than other states on paper. In practice almost every lender, lessor, and umbrella carrier requires BI, and dropping to the registration minimum exposes the driver to a judgment lien in a serious at-fault crash.
• FR-44 replaces SR-22 after a DUI. Florida (and Virginia) require double the state-minimum liability limits on the FR-44 filing, so the cheapest Florida quote after a DUI is not comparable to the cheapest clean-record Florida quote. See our SR-22 and FR-44 coverage guide for the mechanics.
• FLHSMV runs electronic insurance verification. Insurers report policy status electronically; if FLHSMV cannot verify coverage, it can suspend the driver license, license plate, and registration⁷. Mid-term lapses have real consequences in Florida.

For the national carrier shortlist by shopper profile, see our cheapest car insurance by profile page. Running three parallel Florida quotes at identical coverage design (not identical to the state floor, but identical to each other) is the reliable path to a personal number. We do not publish fabricated Florida rates; the honest answer is that the FL cheap-insurance question is really two different questions depending on whether you carry BI, and the answer moves accordingly.

Personal Injury Protection ($10,000 PIP) under Fla. Stat. § 627.736

Florida's no-fault system requires at least $10,000 in PIP on every registered vehicle. PIP is a first-party medical and disability coverage that pays for your medical bills and a portion of lost income regardless of fault, subject to the policy limits and statutory caps¹. For the practical mechanics the 14-day rule and the emergency-medical-condition (EMC) tier structure impose on claims, see our Florida PIP decision guide. For the elevated 100/300/50 FR-44 limits that apply after a Florida DUI conviction, see our Florida FR-44 guide.

• Medical benefits. PIP pays 80% of reasonable and necessary medical, surgical, X-ray, dental, and rehabilitative services¹.
• Disability benefits. PIP pays 60% of loss of gross income and loss of earning capacity per individual from inability to work¹.
• Death benefit. A $5,000 death benefit per individual, in addition to medical and disability benefits, subject to the policy¹.
• The 14-day rule. Coverage for medical benefits is contingent on the injured person receiving initial services within 14 days after the crash. Miss the window, and the PIP medical benefit for that injury can be forfeited¹.
• Emergency Medical Condition (EMC). Whether a treating provider determines an EMC affects the available PIP benefit level under the statute. This is a medical determination made after the crash, not a policy option you elect at underwriting¹.

Property Damage Liability ($10,000 PDL)

Florida requires at least $10,000 in Property Damage Liability coverage on every registered vehicle. PDL pays for damage you cause to someone else's property (their vehicle, fence, mailbox, or building) up to the policy limit²⁶. Modern vehicles routinely cost far more than $10,000, so the state minimum can be inadequate after an at-fault total-loss collision. Personal-limit decisions belong on our coverage-limits guide.

Bodily Injury Liability: not required at the state minimum by default

Florida is one of a small number of states that does not require Bodily Injury Liability at the state minimum for private passenger vehicles by default. Instead, Florida uses PIP to route first-party medical costs and applies the Financial Responsibility Law (Chapter 324) as a back-end mechanism.

• Financial Responsibility Law triggers. After specific triggering events (certain at-fault crashes, certain convictions, unsatisfied judgments), Chapter 324 requires the driver to demonstrate financial responsibility going forward. This typically means obtaining a policy that includes BI limits⁴.
• FR-44 after DUI. Fla. Stat. § 324.023 requires substantially higher liability limits after a DUI conviction: 100/300/50 or a $350,000 combined single limit, maintained for three years from the ending date of any revocation³. FR-44 mechanics live on our after-a-DUI guide.
• Practical implication. The state minimum ($10,000 PIP + $10,000 PDL) does not include any BI limit. If you cause an at-fault crash with injuries and carry only the state minimum, injured third parties can pursue you personally for their medical costs. Our coverage-limits guide walks the deliberate way to decide on BI.

Uninsured / Underinsured Motorist (UM/UIM)

Under Fla. Stat. § 627.727, Florida insurers must include Uninsured Motorist coverage at the bodily-injury liability limits of the policy unless the named insured knowingly rejects the coverage in writing on the statutorily prescribed form⁵. If you did not sign a rejection, UM at BI limits is on the policy.

UM applies when the at-fault driver has no liability insurance; UIM applies when the at-fault driver's coverage is not enough to cover the loss. Because a meaningful share of Florida drivers rely on the state minimum (which does not include BI by default), UM/UIM is practically important protection. Coverage mechanics themselves live on our coverage family pages; this page owns only the Florida rule about how UM must be offered and rejected.

FR-44 after a DUI: higher limits for three years

Fla. Stat. § 324.023 requires additional financial responsibility after a DUI conviction:

• Required limits. $100,000 bodily injury per person, $300,000 per accident, and $50,000 property damage, or a $350,000 combined single limit³. These limits are well above the state minimum PDL requirement.
• Duration. The higher limits must be maintained for three years from the ending date of any revocation resulting from the DUI conviction³.
• FR-44 vs SR-22. Florida uses FR-44 specifically for DUI-related convictions. FR-44 is a filing (like SR-22) but requires higher limits than standard SR-22. SR-22 by itself is used less commonly as a DUI response in Florida because FR-44 is the DUI-specific requirement.

Filing mechanics, lapse consequences, and the interaction with license reinstatement are covered on our after-a-DUI guide. This page states only the Florida rule; the guide walks the consumer journey.

FLHSMV insurance verification and lapse consequences

All Florida-licensed insurers report policy initiation and cancellation to FLHSMV electronically. FLHSMV continuously compares insurer-reported policy data against the department's database of registered vehicles⁷⁸.

• Registration and same-day binding. Insurance purchased for the vehicle must be bound the same day as the issuance of the registration; proof of Florida insurance must be verifiable as of the date the vehicle is registered to avoid suspension⁷.
• Verification letter. If FLHSMV cannot verify coverage on a registered vehicle, it sends the owner a letter requesting insurance information within a specified window⁷.
• Suspension. Failure to respond can lead to suspension of the driver license, license plate, and registration until compliance is demonstrated and reinstatement fees are paid⁷⁸.

Reentry mechanics after a coverage lapse are covered on our after-a-lapse guide, which addresses reinstatement, DMV registration consequences, and how to close the gap without opening another. This page owns only the Florida rule.

Rate approval: prior approval through Florida OIR

The Florida Office of Insurance Regulation is a prior-approval regulator for personal auto insurance: insurers must file rate changes for OIR review and approval before rates can take effect⁹. This is a different regime from Texas (file and use). It affects how frequently rates change and how carriers structure competitive filings; it does not affect the underlying rating factors carriers may use.

Where the Florida situation rules live on YesWeSure

This State Guide owns Florida's current statutory framework. Situation-specific Florida rules already live on the sibling Situation guides, each citing Florida primary sources directly:

• After a DUI. Fla. Stat. § 324.023 FR-44 100/300/50 or $350,000 CSL, three-year maintenance from ending date of revocation, and the SR-22 vs FR-44 distinction are treated on our after-a-DUI guide.
• After a lapse. Reinstatement, DMV suspension mechanics, and how a lapse can affect underwriting are treated on our after-a-lapse guide.
• Moving into Florida. New-resident registration timing and the Florida-authorized-carrier proof of insurance requirement are treated on our moving-to-another-state guide.
• Total-loss journey. ACV valuation, deductible interaction, lienholder and lessor payoff paths, and how Gap interacts with a settlement are treated on our car-totaled guide. Florida-specific salvage-title mechanics are not published on this V1 State Guide.

Where this applies on YesWeSure

Specific Florida topics are treated in detail on sibling pages. This State Guide carries the no-fault PIP, FR-44, and tort-reform framework; the following links go deeper on scenarios, coverage lines, and consumer questions commonly asked by Florida drivers.

• All personal-auto coverage lines explained in one page
• How insurance scoring works (permitted in Florida)
• The car insurance claim timeline, including Florida §627.70131 prompt-pay rules
• Mechanical breakdown insurance (MBI) for Florida drivers out of warranty
• Is it illegal to drive without insurance? Florida DMV consequences
• Stacked vs unstacked UM coverage, which Florida explicitly permits under Fla. Stat. 627.727
• Windshield replacement (Florida mandates zero-deductible glass under Fla. Stat. §627.7288)
• At-fault accident rate-impact mechanics

YesWeSure may receive compensation when readers use quote-comparison links. Compensation does not influence the statutory or regulatory information on this page or the sources cited above. See our advertiser disclosure and editorial standards.

Common questions