Brooklyn Park Car Insurance

If you are a resident in Brooklyn Park, Minnesota, you are required by law to prove that you are financially responsible for all of your vehicles that are registered in the state. To prove you are financially responsible, you must purchase both Personal Injury Protection coverage and liability coverage on any vehicle that is registered in your name.

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Auto insurance requirements vary from state to state, and knowing how the system works in the state of Minnesota is important if you are buying insurance from a Brooklyn Park insurer. Read this guide to Brooklyn Park car insurance before you begin shopping so that you know the requirements, penalties for failing to comply, and also how to find the most competitively priced quotes.

Auto Insurance Requirements in Brooklyn Park

The insurance industry is regulated by the Department of Commerce in the state of Minnesota. The department will oversee producers, agents, and insurers to ensure that all parties adhere to the laws and rules that govern the industry nationally and in the state.

State officials have created the legislative code states the amount of coverage all residents and non-residents with in-state vehicles must carry. Here is a breakdown of the required coverage types and limits in Minnesota:

• Personal Injury Protection: Minnesota is one of the few states in the United States that operates under a No-fault auto insurance system. In a state that operates under a no-fault system, the person will collect claims payments from their own insurer when they experience a loss regardless of who is at fault. This is why residents in Brooklyn Park must carry Personal Injury Protection (PIP).

PIP is a set of basic economic loss benefits that will provide you with money to pay for your medical expenses, lost wages, and other rehabilitative services. In Brooklyn Park, carrying at least $20,000 for medical expenses and $20,000 for loss of income will satisfy state laws. This is referred to as Basic PIP.

• Liability: It is also necessary for drivers to carry liability coverage in Brooklyn Park in case they are involved in an accident with someone who does not carry no-fault insurance. Liability coverage will provide coverage for damages and injuries that you cause when the other party has insurance from a state operating under a tort system. Liability also protects you if a lawsuit is filed against you.

Liability consists of both Bodily Injury and Property Damage coverage. Bodily Injury will pay the other party when they suffer injuries in an accident that you have been deemed negligent for. Property Damage will pay for damages to a third-party's property and public property. All Minnesota residents must carry the following limits:

1. Bodily Injury: $30,000 per person, up to $60,000 per accident
2. Property Damage: $10,000 per accident

• Uninsured Motorist Protection: Just because residents and visitors in Minnesota are required to carry insurance does not mean that 100 percent of people comply with the law. In fact, reports show that about 10.8 percent of drivers in the state do not have coverage at any given time.

In order to protect people who comply with the law, state officials have made carrying Uninsured Motorist Protection (UM) a mandatory requirement. This means that anyone in a hit-and-run accident will not have to worry that they will not receive the economic benefits that they need to recover. The minimum limits of UM that you must carry are: $25,000 per person, up to $50,000 per accident

Penalties for Driving Without Insurance in Brooklyn Park

When you drive without insurance in Minnesota, you are breaking the law. As the number of residents driving without insurance climbs, the courts become more and more strict with the penalties for people found driving without coverage.

Not only are you putting yourself at-risk when you drive without car insurance, you are knowingly putting others at-risk who do not have a choice in the matter.

This is why the serious penalties are imposed on drivers who violate the law. Here are some of the penalties, both monetary and non-monetary, that you could face:

• Misdemeanor Conviction and Fine: If you are pulled over by law enforcement and you cannot furnish proof of insurance, you will be cited at the scene by the officer. If you do not have insurance and it is your first offense, the court will impose a fine of up to $200 and you will have a misdemeanor on your record. Some courts will allow you to complete community service in lieu of the fine. If you are convicted of subsequent offenses, your fine may be up to $1000.
• License Suspension or Revocation: Not only do you have to appear in court and pay a fine, you may also have your driving privilege revoked or suspended because of the misdemeanor conviction. In most cases, your license will only be suspended until you provide proof of insurance and the pay a reinstatement fee. If you are a habitual offender, you will be guilty of a gross misdemeanor and a more serious revocation.
• Jail Time: Driving without insurance is a misdemeanor that can be punishable by a jail sentence. If you are involved in an accident or the judge feels like it is necessary, you can be sentenced to 90 days in jail.
• Vehicle Impound: If you are driving with suspended plates or a suspended license because of failure to buy insurance, your vehicle may very likely end up in an impound lot in Brooklyn Park. To get your vehicle back, you must not only buy insurance but also pay the daily storage and impound fee. These fees can quickly add up, which you will discover if you call your local lots to compare pricing.

How to Find the Best Rates in Brooklyn Park

When you are shopping for Brooklyn Park car insurance, you should always do your homework. By researching insurers and then comparing prices, you can find a quality insurance product at a very affordable price. Here are some valuable tips on finding a quality insurer that will charge you competitive rates:

1. Find a List of Licensed Insurers: The first step to doing your research is discovering which companies are licensed to do business in Minnesota. To find the auto insurance providers that have a license through the Minnesota Department of Commerce, use the License Lookup Tool and select the "Insurance Company" option. Once you know which companies are licensed, you can check their financial standing.
2. Financial Stability: When you are buying a financial product that offers a service you may never need, it is important to buy from a financially stable and secure insurer. There are several consumer agencies that review the records of Property and Casualty insurers that will rate companies independently.These unbiased ratings help you get a feel for the solidity of a company so that you do not buy coverage from a company on the verge of going out of business. You can find ratings through agencies like AM Best, Standard and Poor's and Moody's, which all have their own rating scales that you will need to get familiar with before assessing a company. Once you find companies with strong ratings, you can move on to reviewing complaint records and comparing price.
3. Complaint Index: The Department of Commerce regulates the industry to protect consumers like you. If you have a dispute with an insurer, you can always report a complaint with the department so that it is investigated and resolved. If you want to avoid doing business with a company that has several complaints, check the company's records. You can check whether a specific company has had any enforcement actions by visiting the Commerce Actions and Regulatory Documents Search Tool.
4. Compare Pricing With Several Brooklyn Park Companies: Even though all rates must be approved by the regulatory agency, each company has its own rating system. This system will use several factors to determine how much an applicant will pay for coverage. The weight that is placed on each rating factor depends on what type of client the company is trying to target.

Some Brooklyn Park insurers are targeting a younger demographic and others want more mature and experienced drivers. It depends on the company's marketing strategy and future goals. This is why comparison shopping is so important when you are buying a product like car insurance where price is so objective.

The most effective way to comparison shop is to use a technologically advanced quoting tool online.

These tools give you access to rates with several different Brooklyn Park car insurance companies so that you can determine which companies are competitive without providing your information more than once.

Gather the information that you need, start filling out an online quoting form, and find the best Brooklyn Park car insurance policy for you and your family. Enter your zip code in our FREE tool below to compare car insurance rates now!