South Carolina Driving Without Insurance: The Lapse Fee, the $550 Uninsured Fee Question, Suspension, Impound and How to Reinstate

South Carolina requires every registered vehicle to stay insured. When your insurer reports a cancellation or the SCDMV can't verify coverage, you get a notice giving you 20 working days to provide proof of coverage or proof of an exemption, under S.C. Code § 56-10-650 (opens in a new tab). If the SCDMV doesn't receive it, your driving privilege, license plate and registration can be suspended, and reinstating them may cost up to $400, according to the SCDMV (opens in a new tab). A conviction for driving uninsured is separate. It can bring a fine, a suspension, a reinstatement fee the SCDMV currently lists as $700 for an owner and an SR-22 filing. Don't drive while anything is suspended.

Can you drive if your insurance lapsed?

Not on a suspended license, plate or registration, and not in an uninsured vehicle. If a registered vehicle becomes uninsured, the owner must immediately get insurance on it or surrender the license plate and registration certificate, under S.C. Code § 56-10-240 (opens in a new tab). Driving an uninsured vehicle you own, or letting someone else drive it, is a misdemeanor under S.C. Code § 56-10-520 (opens in a new tab).

If you have a trip coming up and your coverage just ended, the fastest fix is a new policy that your insurer or agent reports to the SCDMV electronically. Ask the agent to confirm the date the coverage starts and the date it was reported, and wait until the SCDMV shows your privileges as clear before you drive.

What should you do after an SCDMV insurance notice?

Insurance companies notify the SCDMV when a vehicle owner's policy is canceled, according to the SCDMV (opens in a new tab). Insurers must report the cancellation or termination of a certified policy within 15 days, under S.C. Code § 56-10-551 (opens in a new tab). If the SCDMV then has no current insurance on file, it sends a letter, and you have 20 business days to have an insurance company electronically verify coverage.

The notice is usually an FR-4 cancellation notice or an FR-31 request for insurance verification. You answer it with the Response to Insurance Notice (Form FR-4A/FR-31A) (opens in a new tab), which asks for the FR-4 reference number, your driver's license or customer number, the cancellation or nonverification date, the vehicle's year and make, the VIN and the plate number. Then you pick the clearance option that fits:

• Insured: your agent or insurance company submits your insurance information to the SCDMV electronically through the SCALIR system.
• Sold or traded: submit the Notice of Vehicle Sold (SCDMV Form 416) or a bill of sale with the form.
• Repossessed: the repossessing company provides a signed letter on its letterhead with the VIN and repossession date, or completes the Affidavit for Repossessed Vehicle (SCDMV Form 4034).
• Moved out of state: turn in the South Carolina plates and send a copy of your out-of-state registration with the form.
• Military service: attach military orders or a DD-214 showing service outside South Carolina, if no one drove the vehicle during the lapse.
• Illness: have your physician complete the certification on the form, if no one drove the vehicle during the lapse.

Military and illness requests can't be processed while you wait in a branch, and the form asks you to allow 3 to 5 business days. If you were insured on the date in the notice, the fix is usually the first option, so call your agent or insurer and ask them to verify the coverage for that exact date.

What is the South Carolina lapse fee?

If the SCDMV doesn't receive verification after a notice, it suspends your driving privilege, license plate and the registrations of the vehicles listed on the policy, and you may have to pay up to $400 to reinstate your driving and registration privileges, according to the SCDMV (opens in a new tab). "Up to" matters here. The amount you owe is the one on your SCDMV notice and record.

You can pay at the SCDMV's Pay Reinstatement Fees (opens in a new tab) page, at any branch office or by mail. Online, the address connected to your credit card must match the address the SCDMV has on file. By mail, send a check or money order and include your customer number or driver's license number. The SCDMV charges a $100 reinstatement fee for each suspension unless another amount is required, and if you owe more than $200 in reinstatement fees, you may qualify for the SCDMV Payment Plan. After paying, confirm with the SCDMV that the suspension has cleared before you drive.

Is the uninsured motor vehicle fee still $550?

No. The $550 figure came from the version of S.C. Code § 56-10-510 (opens in a new tab) in effect until July 1, 2024. That section charged $550 to register or reregister an uninsured motor vehicle, with $50 of it going to the South Carolina Reinsurance Facility. 2023 Act No. 51 reserved the section effective July 1, 2024, so the current Code (opens in a new tab) no longer contains that fee.

The fee that applies now follows a conviction. Under current § 56-10-520 (opens in a new tab), the reinstatement fee for an uninsured-vehicle suspension starts at $600, and the Department of Insurance can adjust it each calendar year by order, based on the average rate level for private passenger auto insurance. The SCDMV (opens in a new tab) currently lists a $700 uninsured motorist fee for an owner convicted of driving uninsured, and SCDOI Order No. 2026-002 (opens in a new tab), posted October 12, 2026, sets the calendar-year 2027 fee at $775. Pay the amount on your SCDMV notice, and call the SCDMV if the figure online and the figure in your letter differ.

Virginia ended a similar option on the same date. Our article on the Virginia uninsured motor vehicle fee covers that change.

What happens if police stop you without insurance?

If an officer stops you and you can't prove insurance, you may be ticketed, fined or jailed, according to the SCDMV's insurance requirements page (opens in a new tab). If you were insured and simply couldn't show it, you avoid a license suspension by showing that you had insurance on the vehicle you were driving within 30 days of receiving the ticket.

Driving uninsured is a different charge. Under S.C. Code § 56-10-520 (opens in a new tab), it's unlawful for an owner to drive an uninsured vehicle or allow someone else to drive it, and unlawful for a non-owner to drive it knowing it's uninsured. The offense is a misdemeanor, and the penalties rise with each conviction.

Only convictions within the previous five years count as prior convictions. For the court date and how to answer the charge, follow the court and appearance information printed on your citation, and direct procedural questions to that court.

What happens to your license after a conviction?

The consequences depend on whether you own the vehicle. For an owner, the SCDMV must suspend the driver's license and every registration certificate and license plate in the owner's name until the reinstatement fee is paid, under § 56-10-520 (opens in a new tab). The SCDMV (opens in a new tab) says the owner's license and registration stay suspended until it receives the $700 uninsured motorist fee, and the insurer must file a Certificate of Insurance (SR-22) for three years starting on the suspension date.

A driver who doesn't own the vehicle gets a 30-day license suspension from the date of the suspension order and pays a $100 reinstatement fee, according to the SCDMV. Our article on South Carolina SR-22 insurance covers the filing.

Can police take or tow your car for no insurance?

The plate is the item the law addresses directly. If you don't return a suspended plate to the SCDMV, a law enforcement officer will take it from you, according to the SCDMV (opens in a new tab). Anyone whose license, registration certificates, plates or decals are suspended must return them right away, in person or electronically, under S.C. Code § 56-10-540 (opens in a new tab), and failing to do so is a traffic infraction.

South Carolina's uninsured-driving statute, § 56-10-520 (opens in a new tab), sets fines, jail time, suspensions and a reinstatement fee. Whether a car is towed at a particular stop depends on the circumstances, so if your vehicle was towed or you were told it would be, ask the law enforcement agency that issued the citation about the tow order and how to get the car back.

What if you sold, stored or moved the car?

Return the plate before you cancel the policy. If you turn in your license plate and registration at an SCDMV branch before you cancel the insurance, you won't be penalized, according to the SCDMV (opens in a new tab).

When you sell a vehicle, the SCDMV's plate return page (opens in a new tab) says to do all of the following:

1. Turn in the Notice of Vehicle Sold (SCDMV Form 416).
2. Turn in the License Plate Turn In form (SCDMV Form 452).
3. Return the plate by mail or at any SCDMV branch.
4. Cancel your South Carolina liability insurance on the vehicle you sold.

If you're moving to another state, update your insurance company first, register the vehicle in the new state, and then return the South Carolina plate. If a lapse notice already arrived for a sold, repossessed or moved vehicle, answer it with the matching clearance option on the FR-4A/FR-31A form.

What if an uninsured car was in a crash?

A crash adds its own suspension. When an uninsured vehicle subject to South Carolina registration is in a reportable accident in the state that results in death, injury or property damage, the SCDMV suspends the owner's driver's license, plates and registration certificates until the owner complies with the law and pays the reinstatement fee, under S.C. Code § 56-10-530 (opens in a new tab).

That suspension can't take effect until the SCDMV offers a contested case hearing before the Office of Motor Vehicle Hearings, and the notice of that opportunity must be included in the suspension order. A certificate of insurance from an agent or representative of an insurer qualified in South Carolina, showing the vehicle was insured on the date and at the time of the accident, is enough to stop the suspension. If you were insured, ask your agent for that certificate as soon as the order arrives.

How do you reinstate your license and registration?

Reinstatement comes down to the same steps in most cases:

When you shop for a new policy after a lapse, each insurer rates it under its own rules and rates. Tell each agency about the lapse and any SR-22 requirement up front so the quote reflects it. If you're changing insurers to avoid another gap, our article on how to switch car insurance covers timing the start and end dates.

Checking an agent and getting help

Use the South Carolina insurance license lookup (opens in a new tab) or the Department of Insurance's Insurance Locator (opens in a new tab) to confirm that an agent and insurer are licensed to do business in South Carolina. If an insurer reported a cancellation in error or won't correct a record, contact the company first and keep every letter and email. If that doesn't resolve it, the Office of Consumer Services (opens in a new tab) takes complaints at 803-737-6180, and insurance entities have 7 days to respond to the department.

Questions to ask an agency when you replace coverage:

• When does the new coverage start, and when will you report it to the SCDMV?
• Can you verify coverage for the date on my FR-4 or FR-31 notice?
• Does this policy meet South Carolina's required liability and uninsured motorist limits?
• Do I need an SR-22, and will you file it?
• What payment options are there, and do installments cost extra?
• Does the policy cover other drivers who use my car?
• How do I report a claim?

Our article on South Carolina car insurance requirements lists the limits a new policy must meet. Riskado's directory lists South Carolina insurance agencies by city and by category.

Frequently asked questions

Is a one-day lapse treated differently?

The SCDMV notice rules apply to any lapse on a registered vehicle, and the 20 working days run from the notice. If your new policy started the day after the old one ended, ask your insurer to verify both dates with the SCDMV so the record shows continuous coverage.

Can I keep driving while I wait for the insurer to verify coverage?

Only if the vehicle is insured and nothing is suspended. Once a suspension takes effect, driving on that license, plate or registration isn't allowed until the SCDMV clears it.

Who gets the reinstatement fee?

Half of the reinstatement fee under § 56-10-520 goes to the Uninsured Enforcement Fund for Department of Public Safety enforcement, and the other half stays in the Uninsured Motorist Fund, under S.C. Code § 56-10-552 (opens in a new tab).

Can I use someone else's car while my license is suspended?

No. A suspension applies to your driver's license, not just to one vehicle. A non-owner suspension after a conviction lasts 30 days from the order, according to the SCDMV (opens in a new tab).