If you don’t have your insurance verification with you when you are driving, and an officer stops you, you don’t need to worry. If you don’t have your insurance verification, the office must run your information through an online database. If the officer finds you had insurance, he can’t penalize you. Even if the officer does not find that you have insurance, you can still avoid legal trouble if you can later verify that you had a valid insurance policy on the vehicle when you were driving.
Recently I talked to a woman who panicked because her auto insurance company had not sent her insurance verification forms yet. She was worried about what might happen if she was caught driving without having her insurance verification form with her. I told her she didn’t need to fear, she wouldn’t likely be in any trouble.
The law does require that every owner or driver of an automobile in the state of Oklahoma have an insurance policy that provides “security for the payment of loss resulting from the liability imposed by law for bodily injury, death and property damage sustained by any person arising out of the ownership, maintenance, operation or use of the vehicle.” The law further states that the insurance policy must have a limit of:
· at least $25,000 for the death or bodily injury of one person in one accident
· at least $25,000 because of injury to property of others in one accident, and
· at least $50,000 for the death or bodily injury of two or more persons in one accident
Furthermore, the law dictates that the owner of a vehicle registered in Oklahoma must “carry in the vehicle at all times” an insurance verification form, or an equivalent form issued by the Oklahoma Department of Public Safety (DPS). The law also says that anyone who drives a motor vehicle in Oklahoma must, while driving, carry an insurance verification form. If you are driving a vehicle you do not own, you may use the owner’s security verification form. (However, if the owner’s security verification form excludes you from insurance coverage, you can’t use this form. Some people will list certain family members as “excluded drivers” if the family member has a high risk of accidents.)
Also, if you’re driving a vehicle you don’t own, you may use your own insurance verification form if your insurance policy allows you to drive vehicles you don’t own. (If you want to know whether your insurance policy allows you to drive vehicles you don’t own, read the contract that came with the policy. For example, my insurance policy contract says, "Insured means you and your resident relatives for ... the maintenance and use of a non-owned car, or a temporary substitute car.” That means that if I drive a vehicle I don’t own, and I carry my insurance verification card with me, I am complying with the law.)
If you are driving, and any law enforcement officer or DPS employee asks you to show your insurance verification form, state law requires you to show them your form. Also, if you are in an accident, the same law requires you to show your verification form to anyone “affected by the accident.”
But what if you forget your insurance verification form? Will you get in trouble?
Not necessarily. The law on this is found at Title 47, Section 7-606 of the Oklahoma State Statutes. Under this law, if a law enforcement officer stops you, he must ask you to produce your insurance verification. If you can’t produce this verification, then the officer must run your information through the online verification system. This is a system on the internet that is accessible to certain government officials. If the officer verifies, through the online verification system, that you have insurance, he can’t arrest you and you cannot be penalized for violating any insurance laws.
Even if you do show your insurance verification form, the officer still must still run your information through the online insurance verification system. But if you show “what appears to be a valid security verification form” and the officer cannot verify your insurance through the online insurance verification system, the officer can’t seize your vehicle or your license plate.
Oklahoma law also authorizes district attorneys and law enforcement agencies to participate in the “Uninsured Vehicle Enforcement Program.” If an agency participates in this program, the agency may employ roadside cameras that are capable of reading license plate numbers, and then check these license plate numbers through the online insurance verification system. If, through this technology, an agency finds that a vehicle was driven while uninsured, this constitutes probable cause to bring a prosecution for noncompliance with the insurance law.
If you don’t produce your verification form, and the officer can’t verify your insurance through the online system, then the officer may issue a citation to appear in court. In addition to issuing a citation, the officer may either:
1) cause the vehicle to be towed, if the officer has probable cause to believe that the vehicle is uninsured, or
2) seize the license plate of the vehicle, and give you a copy of the citation. The officer must then deposit the license plate with the sheriff’s office or local police department. You may use the copy of the citation as a temporary license plate for ten days after the date of the citation. After ten days you can’t use the vehicle at all until you fulfill the requirements to get your license plate back.
How to Get Your License Plate Back
As soon as you prove compliance with the compulsory insurance law, you can show this proof to the county sheriff’s office or the local police department (whichever agency is holding the license plate) and pay an administrative fee of $125. Then you should receive your license plate back.
However, if you had liability insurance at the time of the citation, then you can avoid paying the $125 fee. Within two business days after the date of the citation, you have to provide proof to the sheriff’s office or police department that the insurance policy was in effect at the time of the citation. Then the sheriff’s office or police department must return your license plate with no fee. However, if you don’t provide this proof within two business days after the date of the citation, you’ll still have to pay the $125 fee, even if your policy was in effect at the time of the citation.
Other penalties for driving without insurance
If you violate the compulsory insurance law, you may be punished with a $250 fine and/or thirty days in jail, and/or suspension of your driving privileges. However, before imposing any punishment, a court hearing must be held. Because a prosecution for failing to comply with the insurance law is a criminal case, you have all the constitutional rights that apply to criminal defendants; the state may not impose penalties unless they prove your guilt beyond a reasonable doubt. If you can show that your insurance policy was in effect at the time of the citation, you are entitled to a dismissal of the charge. If you provide this proof at least one business day before your first court date, then the court must dismiss the charges without you having to pay court costs.
However, even if an officer cites you for failing to comply with the compulsory insurance law, that doesn’t mean that you’ll go to court. The district attorney may instead refer the matter to the “Uninsured Motor Vehicle Diversion Program.” If the district attorney refers you to this program, he will send you a letter. You may then enter into an agreement with the district attorney; if you comply with the terms of the agreement, the district attorney may not prosecute you. The terms of this agreement must include:
1) You must provide proof of current insurance
2) You must comply with the compulsory insurance law during the full term of the agreement (the full term of the agreement may not last more than two years)
3) You may not own or operate any motor vehicle in violation of the compulsory insurance law during the full term of the agreement, and
4) You must pay a fee. However, if you provide proof that your insurance policy was in effect at the time of the citation, then the district attorney’s office may not assess a fee.
The bottom line: If you forget to take your insurance form with you when you’re driving, don’t stress over it.
Have questions about the Oklahoma Compulsory Insurance Law? Contact the Persaud Law Office.
If you have questions about your rights under the insurance law, we may be able to help you. Also, if you believe that the government has violated your rights under the compulsory insurance law, we may be able to fashion a remedy and right the wrong. Contact us today for a free consultation.
Photo courtesy of https://buxtonlawgroup.com/practice-areas/insurance-bad-faith/. Licensed under https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nd/4.0/.
Comentarios