Always carry proof of insurance when you or someone else is driving your vehicle. Your insurance company will provide you with a Florida Insurance ID Card. You must have the card (or electronic proof on a smart phone) with you when you’re driving. You may receive a citation if you are stopped by a law enforcement officer and don’t have proof of insurance with you. You’ll have to go to court to prove that you had insurance coverage at the time you were stopped or your driver license may be suspended. If you don’t have proof and the judge convicts you, your driver license and license plate will be suspended. In order to lif the suspension, you will have to get insurance and pay a reinstatement fee ($150 to $500). 

If your driver license and license plate have been under suspension for 30 days or more, a law enforcement officer can seize your license plate immediately. The officer may also take you to jail for driving with a suspended license, which is a first-degree misdemeanor punishable by up to a year in jail and a $1,000 fine. 

If your driver license or license plate is suspended for not having insurance, you won’t be able to get a temporary license for any reason, not even to go to work. Also, if you show a law enforcement officer an insurance card when you know the insurance has been canceled— or if you falsify the card—you may be arrested and charged with a second- degree misdemeanor. 

FLHSMV will always provide you with an opportunity to prove insurance coverage or have an administrative hearing. When you receive the notice of suspension of your license you may request a hearing; otherwise, one will not be scheduled for you. 

## Financial Responsibility Law 

In addition to the required PIP and PDL coverage, if you’re in a crash, you will have to prove that you are financially responsible for all damages you caused. You can prove such financial responsibility by having insurance in effect from a company licensed to do business in Florida, or obtaining a Financial Responsibility Certificate from FLHSMV. Get more information about Financial Responsibility Certificates at flhsmv.gov. 

Depending on your driving record, you may have to obtain additional insurance beyond the basic PIP and PDL requirements. For example, Florida law requires you to have Bodily Injury Liability (BIL) insurance—and increased PDL coverage—when you are convicted of Driving Under the Influence (DUI). The coverage required in such a case must be at least $100,000 BIL for injuries to one person, $300,000 BIL for injuries to two or more people, and $50,000 PDL. This higher coverage must be in effect for three years from the reinstatement date of your driving privilege. The higher limits will no longer apply if you are not convicted of another DUI or any felony traffic offense during that three-year period. 

Other higher coverage limits are required by law if: your driver license is suspended for accumulation of excessive points for infractions; you cause a crash and people were injured; your driver license was revoked for Habitual Traffic Offender status; or your driver license was revoked for any serious offense. The required coverage for these cases are $10,000 BIL for injuries to one person, $20,000 BIL for injuries to two or more people, $10,000 PDL; OR $30,000 combined single limits. 

