Arkansas Car Insurance Laws

Minimum Liability Coverage

Arkansas requires liability insurance only, which covers the property damages and medical costs of people outside of your vehicle:

• Bodily injury liability coverage: $25,000 per person and $50,000 per accident
• Property damage liability coverage: $25,000¹

Penalties for Driving Without Insurance

If you’re caught and convicted of driving without insurance in Arkansas, you’ll be issued a traffic violation and a $25 fine if you had insurance and simply lacked proof at the time you were pulled over. However, if you didn’t have insurance at all, the state will impound your vehicle, revoke your license plate and suspend your registration 10 days after the revocation. During this period, you can buy insurance, but you’ll still need to pay a $20 registration and license plate reinstatement fee, plus the following penalties:

• First offense: Fee of $50 to $250
• Second offense: Fee of $350 to $500 fee
• Third or subsequent offenses: Fee of $500 to $1,000, up to one year in jail or both²

Make sure to carry proof of insurance every time you drive in Arkansas.

No-Fault Insurance System

Due to Arkansas’ add-on no-fault system, drivers have the option to add personal injury protection (PIP) to their policy. PIP pays covers medical expenses, wage loss, and death benefits regardless of who is at fault in the accident. Without PIP, the at-fault party in an accident is generally for the injuries and property damages they cause. The victim can sue in a civil suit if they were less than 50 percent at fault, in line with the state’s modified comparative negligence law. However, their recovery will be “diminished in proportion to the degree of his or her own fault,” according to Arkansas Code § 16-64-122. For example, if the victim is 30 percent at fault and sustains $10,000 of damages, they can only recover up to $7,000.

Discounts

In Arkansas, the law says car insurance agents and brokers must offer you two potential discounts when you’re buying a policy. The first is a discount for college graduates. The second is a discount for senior drivers, age 55 and older, who complete defensive driving courses successfully that the Office of Driver Services has approved.

Registration

In this state, you’ll need insurance to register your car, so make sure to bring proof of insurance, a primary document such as a bill of sale and a Federal Odometer Statement with you to the DMV.³

Cancellation and Nonrenewal

Arkansas has laws regarding when car insurance companies can cancel your insurance policy past the first 60 days. They can only cancellation it for one of the following reasons:

• You did not pay your premium.
• You were convicted of driving while intoxicated.
• You were convicted of homicide or assault from the use of a motor vehicle.
• You’ve had three separate convictions of either reckless driving or speeding in Arkansas, or any combination of the two during the policy period and three months prior to its effective date.
• Your driver’s license or registration has been suspended or revoked either during the policy or 180 days prior.
• You have committed fraud or misrepresentation to your insurance provider.

Companies must notify you 20 days before the cancellation goes into effect, giving you time to find alternative coverage. If the insurer is canceling your policy due to unpaid premiums, that notice period is cut to 10 days. For nonrenewals, the window is 30 days prior to your expiration date.

While Arkansas doesn’t require the following coverages, we recommend you buy them as part of full coverage car insurance:

• Personal injury protection: Arkansas doesn’t require personal injury protection (PIP), but if you needed compensation for your and your passengers’ medical expenses, it could kick in regardless of who caused the accident. PIP also includes reimbursements for any lost wages or child care you had to pay for due to a car accident.
• Collision insurance: Collision insurance pays for your property damage in collisions regardless of fault.
• Comprehensive coverage: If your car is vandalized, stolen or damaged by inclement weather, comprehensive coverage would pay to repair or replace it.
• Uninsured/underinsured motorist coverage: Though the state requires all drivers carry liability coverage, 15 percent of drivers in Arkansas lack car insurance.⁴ If you get into an accident with someone who lacks insurance or whose limits don’t cover the entirety of your losses, uninsured motorist or underinsured motorist coverage could pay for your damages and medical costs.

On average, full coverage car insurance in Arkansas costs $1,683 per year ($140 monthly), and minimum coverage costs $489 per year ($41 monthly). Averages differ for different groups, as you can see below:

Factors That Affect Rates

In Arkansas, there’s no law preventing insurance companies from determining your premiums based on the following factors:

• Credit score
• Sex
• Marital status
• ZIP code
• Driving history
• Vehicle

People with bad credit, poor driving histories, young men will have the highest rates, making it even more important to shop around.

If you move from another state to Arkansas, you have 60 days after becoming an official Arkansas resident to register your car in your new home state.This process does not require an inspection.Start your vehicle registration online here: https://airsdsmvpub.dfa.arkansas.gov/mydmv/_/#8.

The only instance in which you’d need to get your car inspected is if you have to renew your title tag and have an out-of-state salvage title. You can get your vehicle inspected by:

• A certified law enforcement officer of any city/county in Arkansas
• Arkansas State Police or designee⁵

Texting and driving is a particularly dangerous form of distracted driving, which is why, in Arkansas, it’s illegal for drivers of all ages to text and drive. This law is under primary enforcement, which means police officers can pull you over for texting and driving on its own. No other offense is required.⁶

Arkansas requires all drivers to carry a minimum level of liability insurance, including bodily injury and property damage coverage. The state’s add-on no-fault system allows drivers to add Personal Injury Protection (PIP) coverage for extra protection, although it’s not mandatory. Arkansas also operates under a modified comparative negligence rule, meaning victims can recover damages unless they are more than 50 percent at fault for an accident. To avoid penalties and maintain financial security, it’s important for drivers to keep their insurance up to date and consider adding additional coverage options based on their needs.