What Are Connecticut’s Car Insurance Requirements?

Connecticut’s car insurance requirements set a floor every registered vehicle must meet: liability coverage of $25,000 per person and $50,000 per accident for bodily injury, $25,000 per accident for property damage, and matching uninsured and underinsured motorist coverage on the same policy.¹ Connecticut is an at-fault state, so the driver who causes a crash is financially responsible for the other party’s losses, and these limits are what stand between you and a personal judgment.

The Required Liability Limits

The mandatory liability coverage is often shorthanded as “25/50/25.” Each number is a separate cap that applies when you’re at fault:¹

$25,000 per person for bodily injury — the most your insurer will pay toward one person’s medical bills, lost wages, and pain and suffering.
$50,000 per accident for bodily injury — the total available when more than one person is hurt in the same crash.
$25,000 per accident for property damage — the cost of repairing or replacing another driver’s vehicle or any other property you damaged.

These are minimums. You can purchase higher limits, and because a single emergency room visit can exceed $25,000, many drivers do. Once the policy limit is exhausted, anything beyond it is yours to pay.

Uninsured and Underinsured Motorist Coverage

Every auto policy sold in Connecticut must also include uninsured motorist (UM) and underinsured motorist (UIM) coverage, with bodily injury limits no lower than $25,000 per person and $50,000 per accident.²

UM coverage applies when the at-fault driver has no insurance or can’t be identified, as in a hit-and-run. UIM applies when the other driver is insured but their limits aren’t enough to cover your injuries; your own insurer pays the shortfall up to your UM/UIM limit.

Your UM/UIM limits automatically match your liability limits unless you specifically request lower amounts in writing, and they can never drop below the 25/50 statutory minimum.² One limitation to know: mandatory UM/UIM covers bodily injury and death only. Damage to your own vehicle from an uninsured driver is not covered unless you also carry collision.

Proof of Insurance You Must Carry

You must have your insurance identification card available any time you’re driving. If a police officer or the DMV Commissioner asks for it and you can’t produce it, that failure counts as initial evidence that you aren’t carrying the required coverage.³

The card has to show the insurer’s name, your policy number, the effective date of coverage, and the year, make or model, and VIN of each covered vehicle.⁴

A paper card isn’t required. You can display the card as an electronic image on your phone or tablet, and if you hand your device to an officer, the statute prohibits them from viewing anything else on it.⁵

What Happens If Your Coverage Lapses

Insurance companies are required to notify the DMV whenever a policy is canceled or lapses. If coverage has been inactive for more than 14 days, the DMV mails a suspension notice warning that your vehicle registration will be suspended by the date on the notice.⁶

A lapse beyond 14 days also triggers a $200 administrative fine. You can dispute it if you have proof of continuous coverage, such as documentation showing a carrier switch with a reporting error. The DMV hearing is limited to two questions: was the vehicle registered to you when the insurance was canceled, and did you maintain continuous coverage throughout the registration period?⁶

Ignore the notice and the DMV suspends your registration. You can’t legally drive the vehicle, register a new one, or renew any registration in your name until the suspension is cleared.

Penalties for Driving Without Insurance

A conviction for operating a vehicle without the required coverage brings a fine between $100 and $1,000.³

The DMV also suspends both your registration and your driver’s license. A first conviction brings a one-month suspension; a second or later conviction extends that to six months.³

Commercial vehicles are treated far more harshly. The owner of a commercially registered vehicle who knowingly operates it or allows it to be operated without insurance faces a class D felony, which carries up to five years in prison and a fine of up to $5,000.³

To reinstate a suspended license, you have to secure a new qualifying policy and pay a $175 reinstatement fee to the DMV.⁷ That’s on top of any $200 administrative lapse fine and any court-imposed penalty.

When You May Need a Certificate of Financial Responsibility

After certain serious violations, the DMV or a court can require you to file a Certificate of Financial Responsibility, known in most other states as an SR-22. It isn’t a separate policy. It’s a form your insurer files directly with the state certifying you carry at least the minimum required coverage, and if the policy lapses or is canceled, your insurer notifies the DMV immediately.

Common triggers include DUI convictions, driving without insurance, license revocations, and repeated serious traffic offenses. The filing requirement typically runs three years, though the exact duration depends on the violation. Letting the certificate lapse before the required period ends resets the clock and can prompt an immediate license suspension.

Special Rules for Rideshare Drivers

If you drive for a company like Uber or Lyft, your personal auto policy almost certainly won’t cover a crash that happens while you’re working. Most personal policies exclude business use, and Connecticut law expressly allows personal auto insurers to write exclusions for any loss that occurs while the driver is logged into a transportation network company app.

Connecticut sets separate coverage requirements for TNC drivers in two phases:⁸

App on, waiting for a ride request: the driver or the TNC must maintain at least $50,000/$100,000 for bodily injury and $25,000 for property damage, plus UM/UIM coverage.
Ride accepted or passenger in the vehicle: coverage rises to at least $1,000,000 per accident for injury, death, and property damage, plus UM/UIM coverage.

A real coverage gap can exist during the “app on, waiting” phase if neither the personal insurer nor the TNC has picked up coverage. Some insurers sell a rideshare endorsement that fills the gap, which is worth asking about if you drive even occasionally for a TNC.

Why the Minimums Often Aren’t Enough

Because Connecticut is a fault-based state, the person who caused the accident is financially responsible for the other party’s injuries and property damage. The injured party can file a claim against your liability insurance, negotiate a settlement, or sue. In a no-fault state, each driver’s own insurer handles their medical bills regardless of who caused the wreck; Connecticut doesn’t work that way.

If you rear-end someone with $80,000 in medical bills and you carry only the state minimum, your policy pays $25,000 and the remaining $55,000 is a personal exposure. The 25/50/25 floor keeps you legal. Whether it keeps you protected depends on what the other driver and their lawyer decide to pursue.

1
Justia. Connecticut Code 14-112 – Proof of Financial Responsibility
2
Justia. Connecticut Code 38a-336 – Uninsured and Underinsured Motorist Coverage
3
Justia. Connecticut Code 14-213b – Operation Prohibited When Insurance Coverage Fails to Meet Minimum Requirements
4
Connecticut Insurance Department. Bulletin PC-87 – Automobile and Motorcycle Insurance Identification Cards
5
Connecticut General Assembly. An Act Concerning Electronic Proof of Automobile Insurance
6
CT.gov. Learn How to Comply With Insurance, Tax, and Registration Laws
7
CT.gov. Reinstate Your CT Drivers License After a Suspension
8
Connecticut General Assembly. An Act Regulating Transportation Network Companies