Auto Insurance Requirements in Michigan

Michigan Auto Insurance Fraud

The cost of insurance fraud in the state of Michigan amounts to millions of dollars every year. Some of Michigan's auto insurance fraud is overt and obvious. This would include crimes such as staged accidents and hidden cars that are reported as stolen in order to collect on the insurance. Other types of insurance fraud are more subtle. Auto insurance consumers may register and insure a car at the address of a friend or relative whose zip code yields lower auto insurance rates. This may not seem like fraud to some people, but what they fail to realize is that the cost of fraud is passed down to the consumer in higher insurance rates. Insurance fraud is not a victimless crime.

Michigan's Alcohol-Related Accidents

Michigan has higher than normal fatality crash rates, with 800 to 1,000 people dying in automobile accidents each year. Roughly 250 to 300 of these deaths are related to driving under the influence of alcohol, and this amounts to 28 through 30 percent of Michigan's auto accident fatalities being alcohol related. Approximately 450 of Michigan's auto fatalities are the result of at least one driver with a blood alcohol content (BAC) level of 0.08 percent or higher. One hundred of Michigan's auto fatalities are the result of a driver with a BAC of 0.01 percent and 0.07 percent. This illustrates that alcohol-related fatalities can happen before a driver has hit the BAC limit of 0.08.

Unique Michigan Laws

It is illegal for Detroit, Michigan residents to let a pig run free unless it has a nose ring. It is also illegal for a husband to scowl at his wife on a Sunday, to sell cars on a Sunday or for a woman to cut her hair without her husband's permission. It appears that some of Michigan's laws need to be revised or removed in light of the 21st Century!

Driving in Michigan

Michigan is a state where fall leaves reach their red, gold, orange and brown splendor in autumn. Did you know that Michigan's "Color Tours" are a big state attraction each autumn season? Drivers can follow one of 26 different fall foliage driving tours through old historic roadways throughout the state.

Michigan Auto Insurance Requirements

All motorists in the state of Michigan are required to purchase at least the legal minimum amounts of automobile insurance coverage required by the state. These minimum coverages for Michigan's liability (aka "no-fault insurance") are as follows:

• Bodily injury of one person: $20,000.
• Bodily injury for all injuries in the same accident: $40,000.
• Property damage liability: $10,000.

Motorists must keep their insurance card either with them when they drive or in their cars. Anyone who is pulled over and fails to produce a current insurance card will have his or her license suspended, and a fee of $50 may be charged at the judge's discretion. In some cases, a motorist may have to show proof of at least six months of prepaid insurance coverage before his or her license will be reinstated.