If you are convicted of driving under the influence of drugs or other intoxicants, you’ll need a Florida FR44. In fact, this will be a requirement in order to get your drivers license reinstated. Most consumers and many insurance agents are totally unfamiliar with Florida FR44 insurance, and recent changes have added to the confusion. The FR44 filing process must be completed successfully before a Florida DUI driver can reinstate their license.
Florida FR44 Insurance Requirements:
Liability requirements are a minimum of $100,000 per person, $300,000 per accident of Bodily Injury Liability and $50,000 of Property Damage Liability (100/300/50). A single combined limit of $300,000 is also acceptable. The financial responsibility requirement for other drivers in Florida is 10/20/10. After a Florida FR44 policy is issued it cannot be cancelled and the compliance period is for three years from the date of conviction. The FR44 filing must be on a Florida insurance policy.
FR44 Insurance Policy Types:
In addition to a car or truck policy, you could get a Florida FR44 Non-Owner policy. If you don’t own a vehicle, but still want your license reinstated, a Non-Owner FR44 is usually a far cheaper alternative. A Florida FR44 Non-Owner policy excludes Personal Injury Protection, which is very expensive and required on every car or truck policy. The last option would be to get a Motorcycle policy, which also eliminates the need for Personal Injury Protection. The down side to this option is that you need to own a motorcycle. Of all the options listed, the Non-Owner Florida FR44 is the cheapest route.
Florida FR44 Companies:
Most mainstream insurance companies don’t want drivers requiring a Florida FR44. In fact, most mainstream companies like Progressive, Geico, Allstate, and State Farm will charge absurd prices if they even take you at all. As with everything else in life, there are lesser known companies that specialize in Florida FR44 insurance. While we shop all companies at our disposal, the most reasonable priced FR44 insurance policies usually come from these niche players in the Florida FR44 market.
Florida FR44 Insurance Cost:
The State filing fee for a Florida FR44 is just 15.00 dollars. However, Increased liability limits, removal of safe driver discounts, and placement into a less favorable rating tier will ultimately increase your costs significantly. Over time, maintaining high limits and continuous prior insurance will provide noticeable discounts that reduce rates. Also, this risk group has been very profitable for companies (agents too) and therefore competition will likely increase. After 3 years of maintaining a Florida FR44 the rating points will be removed and the discounts will continue.
Florida FR44 Form Completion:
In order to run quotes and ultimately bind the Florida FR44 insurance policy, we’ll need standard information such as Name, Birth Date, Address, Driver’s License Number, VIN of your automobile (if you own a vehicle), etc. Once the policy has been paid for, we immediately submit your FR44 Certificate to the DMV. While it can take up to 72 hours for the DMV to process that filing, you also have the option of hand carrying your Florida FR44 Certificate to the DMV for immediate processing.
Florida FR44 Filing:
The completed Florida FR44 form is electronically filed (submitted) to Florida’s Bureau of Financial Responsibility. After June 30, 2009 all companies must file electronically. Most of the time the DMV does not accept proof of an FR44 Filing from policyholders, but we can fax the form to the DMV for you. It takes less than 5 minutes for us to complete that process. Insurance companies are also required to notify the bureau if there is a change to your FR44 policy status, such as cancellation, termination, or lapse for any reason.
Miscellaneous Florida FR44 Facts:
The actual name of the form is the Florida Uniform Financial Responsibility Certificate FR-44. Florida statute 324.023 is applicable and effective after October 1, 2007. There are no driving restrictions associated with a Florida FR44 filing and Driver Exclusions are not permitted. There cannot be more than one Florida FR44 on the same driver (and why would you?). Noncompliance results in license and vehicle registration suspension.
