Alabama Car Insurance Requirements: The 25/50/25 Minimums, Proof of Insurance, the Uninsured Motorist Offer and How Alabama Fault Rules Affect a Claim

Alabama requires liability insurance of at least $25,000 for bodily injury or death of one person, $50,000 for all bodily injury or death in one accident, and $25,000 for property damage, according to the Alabama Department of Revenue (opens in a new tab). The car has to be covered by an Alabama policy before you register it, and license plate officials check that coverage electronically through the state's Online Insurance Verification System, or OIVS. If you just bought a car, you have 20 calendar days to register it, and the insurance still has to be in place first. Alabama policies also include uninsured motorist coverage unless the named insured rejects it, and "full coverage" is a nickname for a bundle of coverages, not a single policy the law defines.

What liability insurance must an Alabama vehicle carry?

The minimum is often written as 25/50/25. Those numbers come from Code of Alabama § 32-7-6 (opens in a new tab), and § 32-7A-4 (opens in a new tab) requires every policy on an Alabama-registered vehicle to meet them. The Alabama Department of Insurance (opens in a new tab) describes the limits the same way.

Liability coverage pays for injuries and damage you cause to other people. It doesn't pay to fix your own car. The two bodily injury numbers work together: if a crash injures three people, no one person can receive more than $25,000 from a minimum policy, and all three together can't receive more than $50,000. Whether that floor is enough for your situation is a separate question, and our article on how much car insurance you need walks through the tradeoffs of higher limits.

The duty reaches more people than the person whose name is on the title. Under § 32-7A-4 (opens in a new tab), no one may operate, register or keep a vehicle registered, and no owner may let someone else do so, unless the vehicle is covered by a liability policy, a commercial auto liability policy, a motor vehicle liability bond or a cash deposit with the State Treasurer. The definitions in § 32-7A-2 (opens in a new tab) treat a borrower under a car loan, a conditional buyer and a lessee with the right to buy and the immediate right of possession as the owner. If your car is financed or leased, you are usually the one who has to keep it insured.

The policy also has to be an Alabama policy from an insurer qualified to write auto liability insurance in the state, according to the Department of Revenue (opens in a new tab). One exception covers Alabama residents on active military duty who are stationed in another state: they can meet the requirement with liability coverage bought where they're stationed, at least equal to Alabama's minimums, under § 32-7A-5 (opens in a new tab). The Department of Revenue's liability insurance FAQs (opens in a new tab) say to send a copy of the military orders and the out-of-state proof of insurance for review.

Do you need insurance before registering or renewing?

Yes. The vehicle must be covered by an Alabama liability policy before it is registered, according to the Department of Revenue's registration FAQs (opens in a new tab). When you register or renew, the license plate official tries to confirm your policy through OIVS. If OIVS can't confirm it, you have to show evidence of insurance at the counter, and § 32-7A-17 (opens in a new tab) bars the office from issuing the registration until it receives that evidence or an OIVS confirmation.

The Alabama insurance card is the most common proof. The Department of Revenue's OIVS user guide (opens in a new tab) lists other evidence the office can accept when OIVS doesn't confirm a policy:

• An insurance card or temporary insurance card.
• A current declarations page from the liability policy.
• A liability insurance binder, or a legible copy.
• A certificate of insurance, or a legible copy.
• A motor vehicle rental agreement.
• Electronic evidence of insurance.
• Proof that you bought the vehicle within the previous 20 calendar days, together with a current insurance card for the vehicle it replaced.

An insurance card has to show the vehicle's year, make and VIN, the insured's name, the insurer's name and NAIC number, the policy number, and effective and expiration dates. Check the VIN on your card against the vehicle and the registration receipt before you go. A single wrong digit can stop OIVS from confirming a policy that exists.

How long do you have to register a car you just bought?

You have 20 calendar days from the date you buy or otherwise acquire a new or used vehicle to get a license plate, according to the Department of Revenue (opens in a new tab). If the 20th day falls on a Sunday, a legal holiday or a day the licensing office is closed, the next working day counts as the last day.

Those 20 days are for the title and registration paperwork. The coverage rule doesn't pause during them: the car must be insured before it is registered, and § 32-7A-4 (opens in a new tab) bars operating an uninsured vehicle at any point. Call your insurer or agent the day you buy the car and ask how the new vehicle is covered from the moment you drive it away, and when the insurer will issue a card with the new VIN.

If you're moving to Alabama with a non-commercial vehicle that has a valid registration from another state, you have 30 days from the day the vehicle enters Alabama to register it, under § 40-12-262 (opens in a new tab) as the Department of Revenue (opens in a new tab) explains. Once it is registered in Alabama, it needs Alabama liability coverage.

What happens when Alabama can't verify your coverage?

The Department of Revenue can check registrations against insurer records at any time through OIVS, under § 32-7A-7 (opens in a new tab). When it can't confirm coverage, it mails, and sometimes emails, an MLI Verification Notice asking whether the vehicle was insured on a specific verification date. You have 30 calendar days to respond.

If you were insured on that date, respond through MyDMV or at your local licensing office with proof. If the problem is a VIN, policy number or NAIC number that doesn't match, the Department of Revenue's liability insurance FAQs (opens in a new tab) tell you to ask the insurer to send confirmation of coverage for that date on company letterhead, from the insurer's email address, through the Be Sure to Insure Alabama website.

If no response comes in, or the coverage can't be confirmed, the department suspends the vehicle's registration. Under § 32-7A-12 (opens in a new tab), the suspension ends when the owner shows proof of current insurance and pays a reinstatement fee. As of October 2026, that fee is $200 for a first violation and $400 for a second or later violation, according to the Department of Revenue (opens in a new tab). The fee is waived if coverage on the verification date is later confirmed. A no-insurance ticket from a police officer is a separate matter with its own fine. Our article on the Alabama insurance lapse fine covers the notice, the fees and appeals step by step.

A car you stored, couldn't drive or had already sold during the gap has its own route. You give the licensing office evidence that the vehicle wasn't used, and if the office accepts it, the registration is revoked instead of suspended and no reinstatement fee is due, according to the Department of Revenue's reinstatement fee FAQs (opens in a new tab). You can use that exemption only once per registration period, and you need a new registration and plate before driving the car again.

Is uninsured motorist coverage required in Alabama?

Alabama requires insurers to include it, and lets you turn it down. Under § 32-7-23 (opens in a new tab), an auto liability policy on a vehicle registered or principally garaged in Alabama must include uninsured motorist coverage for bodily injury at the 25/50 limits in § 32-7-6, unless the named insured rejects it. If you rejected it on an earlier policy with the same insurer, the insurer doesn't have to add it back at renewal unless you ask in writing.

Uninsured motorist coverage pays for injuries you're legally entitled to recover from a driver who has no bodily injury liability insurance. The statute's definition of an uninsured vehicle also includes a driver whose limits are below Alabama's minimum, an insurer that goes insolvent, and a driver whose total available coverage is less than your damages. Before you sign a rejection, ask the agent what the form gives up and what your policy would pay if an uninsured driver hit you. Our article on Alabama uninsured motorist coverage goes further into limits, stacking and claims.

What does full coverage mean in Alabama?

There is no such thing as a single "full coverage" auto policy, according to the NAIC's auto insurance shopping tool (opens in a new tab). Policies are built from separate coverages, and when people say "full coverage" they usually mean liability plus collision and comprehensive.

Collision pays for damage to your car when it hits an object, such as a tree or another car. Comprehensive pays for damage from most other causes, including fire, severe weather, vandalism, floods and theft, according to the Alabama Department of Insurance (opens in a new tab). Both are optional under Alabama law and each carries a deductible, the amount you pay on a covered physical-damage claim before the insurer pays. Other options include medical payments, rental reimbursement and towing. Our article on comprehensive vs collision insurance explains how the two differ.

A lender can require more than the law does. A car loan agreement typically requires you to keep the car insured and lets the lender buy coverage and charge you for it if you don't, according to the Alabama Department of Insurance (opens in a new tab), which adds that lender-placed premiums are often much higher than coverage you buy yourself. Check the loan or lease contract for the coverages and deductibles it requires, and show it to your agent.

How does fault affect a claim in Alabama?

Alabama follows contributory negligence. The Supreme Court of Alabama (opens in a new tab) has described it as an affirmative and complete defense to a negligence claim. To use it, the person being sued has to prove that the injured person knew about the dangerous condition, appreciated the danger and failed to use reasonable care by putting themselves in its way. The court also noted that mere heedlessness isn't enough.

This rule matters most when you claim against another driver or that driver's insurer, because a defense of contributory negligence can decide whether a negligence claim succeeds. A claim under your own policy, such as collision, works differently: it depends on your coverages, exclusions and conditions. The Alabama Department of Insurance can help you understand your policy and look into whether an insurer met its obligations, but it can't decide who was at fault, set the value of a claim or give legal advice, according to its complaint page (opens in a new tab). For a disputed injury claim, a lawyer licensed in Alabama is the person to ask.

What should you ask an Alabama agent?

Bring your current declarations page, the VIN, any loan or lease contract and any MLI notice you've received. Then ask:

• What liability limits are on the declarations page, and what does each one pay for?
• Is uninsured and underinsured motorist coverage included, at what limits, and what would signing a rejection change?
• What are the collision and comprehensive deductibles?
• What losses does the policy exclude?
• Are medical payments, rental reimbursement or towing included?
• Does the policy cover how I actually use the car, including any business use?
• What documents can I use as proof of insurance, and how soon will the insurer report the policy to OIVS?
• What does my lender or lessor require?
• How much notice will I get before a cancellation?
• Who do I call if OIVS can't confirm my policy?

An insurer must give 10 days' notice before canceling for nonpayment and 20 days' notice for any other reason, according to the Alabama Department of Insurance (opens in a new tab), and once a policy has been in effect for 60 days it can be canceled only for the reasons listed in § 27-23-21 (opens in a new tab). Before you share personal documents with an agent, look up the license with the Alabama insurance license lookup (opens in a new tab). If a problem with an insurer or agent isn't resolved after you contact them, you can file a complaint with the Alabama Department of Insurance (opens in a new tab). Riskado's directory lists insurance agencies in Alabama, and our article on how to choose an insurance agent covers what to look for.

Frequently asked questions

Can I register a car in Alabama with an out-of-state policy?

Generally no. An Alabama-registered vehicle must be covered by an Alabama liability policy, according to the Department of Revenue (opens in a new tab), and an insurer may be able to convert an out-of-state policy to an Alabama one. Active-duty service members stationed outside Alabama can use coverage from the state where they're stationed if it meets Alabama's minimums.

Is collision or comprehensive coverage required by Alabama law?

No. Both are optional under state law, according to the Alabama Department of Insurance (opens in a new tab), though a lender or lessor can require them in the loan or lease contract.

Does paying a no-insurance ticket clear an MLI suspension?

No. The registration reinstatement fee is separate from any ticket fine assessed by a court, according to the Department of Revenue (opens in a new tab). You still need proof of current insurance and the $200 or $400 fee to end the suspension.

Who decides fault after an Alabama crash?

Fault in an injury or damage claim is decided between the parties, their insurers and, if it goes that far, a court. The Alabama Department of Insurance can't determine negligence or fault, according to its complaint page (opens in a new tab).

Before you register or renew

Get Alabama liability coverage of at least 25/50/25 in place first, check that the VIN on your card matches the car, and register a newly bought vehicle within 20 calendar days. Decide on uninsured motorist coverage before you sign any rejection, check what your lender requires, and answer any MLI Verification Notice within 30 days. Asking a few Alabama agencies to quote the same limits and deductibles shows what that coverage costs you.