Auto Insurance Requirements in California

California law requires all drivers to have minimum liability insurance which will cover damage or injury. Comprehensive/collision insurance does not meet the state's minimum auto insurance coverage and is considered optional. The minimum liability insurance requirements for private passenger vehicles are $15,000.00 for any injury or death to one person, $30,000.00 for any injury or death to more than one person, and $5000.00 for any damage to property. If you are ever involved in an accident and you are found to be at fault, your bodily injury liability will cover the costs involved in any injuries that may have occurred to someone. Your property damage liability will cover someones property that you may damaged during an accident.

California is very serious when it comes to having liability insurance. Proof of auto insurance must be provided whenever you are renewing your registration, get in an accident, or when stopped by law enforcement.
Any privately owned vehicle must have the minimum required liability insurance whenever they are operating their vehicle or when their vehicle is parked on a public highway. Those who are not compliant with the California insurance laws are subject to very serious penalties such as their vehicle being impounded.

In 2006 changes were made to insure that all who operate a private passenger vehicle have minimum liability insurance. The new laws required auto insurance companies to electronically report private use vehicle insurance information to DMV, thus taking uninsured motorist off of the road. This new law was made specifically for private passenger vehicles, and not vehicles use for commercial or business use. These new laws helped the DMV in taking appropriate actions through vehicle suspension as required by law. If a vehicle owner does not have the minimum required auto insurance, they would not be able to register their vehicle. Police officers and the court system also gained access to the insurance status on DMV records, something they did not have in the past.

If someone can not afford liability insurance for their vehicle, there are programs in California that will help them out. One such program is the California Low Cost Automobile Insurance Program. The purpose of this Program is to provide low cost automobile liability insurance to those who simply can't afford it, the program is available state wide.