Minimum car insurance in Arkansas
Arkansas requires only one type of auto insurance to legally drive: Liability insurance. If you cause a car accident, liability insurance covers the damage and/or injuries you cause.
While you only need the state's minimum insurance limits to drive, those amounts may not be enough if you cause an accident. You can still be sued for what your auto insurance doesn't cover. Let's look at the insurance options in Arkansas so you can make the right picks.
Minimum Arkansas liability insurance:
- $25,000 bodily injury per person
- $50,000 bodily injury per accident
- $25,000 property damage per accident
This is often written as 25/50/25.
Uninsured motorist (UM) and underinsured motorist (UIM) coverage:
In Arkansas, insurance companies must offer UM insurance but you can decline. If you're hit by a driver who has no liability insurance, you can make an injury claim on your own UM insurance. If you buy UM, you must buy at least limits of 25/50 ($25,000 per person/$50,000 per accident) and insurers much also offer you UIM coverage. UIM is similar to UM but pays out if you're hit by a driver with some liability insurance but not enough.
Optional car insurance in Arkansas
Comprehensive and collision coverage: These cover damage to your own vehicle from hitting another car or object, hitting an animal, hail, flood, fire, vandalism, falling objects and explosions. Comprehensive insurance also covers car theft.With both comprehensive and collision, the maximum payout is the value of your vehicle minus the deductible amount you choose. For example, if you total your car by hitting a deer or your car is stolen, you get a maximum payout.
Personal injury protection (PIP) & medical payments (MedPay): Both of these coverage types pay for injuries to you and your passengers. PIP insurance can also cover lost wages if you can't work, services for tasks you can't perform (such as house cleaning) and funeral expenses.
You must show an insurance ID card (or other proof of financial responsibility) in Arkansas if:
Law enforcement requests it or your vehicle is involved in a car accident that causes:
- Bodily injury or death
- Property damage in excess of $1,000
Penalties for not having car insurance in Arkansas
- First offense: fine from $50 to $250
- Second offense: fine from $250 to $500
- Third or subsequent offense: fine from $500 to $1,000, up to one year in jail, or both
Source: Property Casualty Insurers Association of America
Consumer complaints against the largest auto insurance companies in Arkansas
Each state's department of insurance collects complaints against insurance companies that operate in the state and supplies the numbers to the National Association of Insurance Commissioners. A national "complaint ratio" shows the number of complaints relative to the company's size of business. Here are complaint ratios for the largest auto insurance companies in Arkansas.
Updated July 10, 2018
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