By the Drivers Compass editors · Updated October 31, 2026
New York requires liability limits written as 25/50/10 — $25,000 bodily injury per person, $50,000 per crash, $10,000 property damage (New York State DMV, undated) — plus $50,000 of no-fault (PIP) coverage and uninsured motorist bodily injury coverage that cannot be waived (Simple Insurance Guide, 2026-10, citing the DMV; thatcarhitme.com, undated). Those minimums are described as set by Insurance Law §3420 and Vehicle and Traffic Law §311 (JTNY Law, 2026-04).
The policy must come from a company licensed by the NYS Department of Financial Services and certified by DMV; an out-of-state policy is not accepted (New York State DMV, undated).
New York Minimum Coverage Limits
New York states its liability minimums in four parts, with a higher figure where a crash causes death. The split is written as 25/50/10.
| Coverage Type | Minimum Limit | Required or Optional | Statute Citation |
|---|---|---|---|
| Bodily injury, one person | $25,000, or $50,000 if the person dies (New York State DMV, undated) | Required | Insurance Law §3420 and VTL §311 (JTNY Law, 2026-04) |
| Bodily injury, two or more people | $50,000, or $100,000 if two or more die (New York State DMV, undated) | Required | Insurance Law §3420 and VTL §311 (JTNY Law, 2026-04) |
| Property damage, one crash | $10,000 for most vehicles (New York State DMV, undated) | Required | Insurance Law §3420 and VTL §311 (JTNY Law, 2026-04) |
| No-fault / PIP | $50,000 (Simple Insurance Guide, 2026-10, citing the DMV) | Required — New York is a no-fault state | New York no-fault statute |
| Uninsured motorist, bodily injury | Fixed at the same 25/50 bodily injury minimum as liability (thatcarhitme.com, undated) | Required; cannot be waived | Insurance Law §3420(f) |
| Supplementary uninsured/underinsured motorist (SUM) | Must be offered up to your own bodily injury liability limits, subject to a prescribed maximum (thatcarhitme.com, undated) | Optional, but declining or reducing it needs a signed waiver on the state's prescribed form (thatcarhitme.com, undated) | Insurance Law §3420(f)(2) |
| Collision | No state minimum | Optional under state law | None — contractual only |
| Comprehensive | No state minimum | Optional under state law | None — contractual only |
Two structural rules matter as much as the numbers. The policy must be written by a company licensed by the NYS Department of Financial Services and certified by DMV (New York State DMV, undated). And coverage must stay in force for as long as the registration is valid, even if you never drive the car (New York State DMV, undated).
For-hire taxis and livery vehicles operating within New York City are separate: their minimum liability limits are set by Taxi and Limousine Commission regulations, not the passenger-vehicle figures above (JTNY Law, 2026-04).
Coverages Beyond the Minimum
None of the following is required by New York law. Each is sold alongside the state minimums (Simple Insurance Guide, 2026-10), and the reason is usually a loan or lease contract rather than a statute. A lender's requirement is enforceable against you as a borrower; it is not a motor vehicle offense, and DMV does not police it.
- Collision — pays to repair or replace your own vehicle after a crash regardless of fault. The state does not require it because New York's mandatory liability coverage protects other people, not your car. A lender or lessor holds a financial interest in the vehicle itself and will normally require collision with a capped deductible, naming itself as loss payee, until the loan is satisfied.
- Comprehensive — theft, fire, flood, falling objects and similar non-collision losses. No state mandate, but a lienholder's collateral can be destroyed with no collision involved, so loan and lease agreements generally pair it with collision.
- Higher liability limits — anything above 25/50/10 (New York State DMV, undated). The statutory floor caps what your insurer pays to others; it does not cap what a court can award against you. Lessors often require bodily injury limits above the state minimum because their name is on the title.
- Supplementary uninsured/underinsured motorist (SUM) — extends protection when the at-fault driver has little or no coverage. Your insurer must offer it up to your own bodily injury limits under Insurance Law §3420(f)(2), subject to a prescribed maximum, and you can decline or reduce it only by signing the prescribed waiver form (thatcarhitme.com, undated). Lenders do not require SUM; it protects you, not the collateral.
- Added medical and wage-loss coverage — the mandatory $50,000 of no-fault coverage (Simple Insurance Guide, 2026-10) is a floor, and options sit on top of it. Whether any add-on applies to your situation depends on that insurer's filed policy language.
If you drop coverage a lender requires, it can force-place insurance and bill you. That is a contract consequence, separate from anything DMV does.
Penalties for Driving Uninsured or Underinsured
New York enforces the requirement on two tracks at once: traffic court, and DMV's hold on your license, registration and plates.
In traffic court, driving without insurance — or allowing someone else to drive your uninsured vehicle — can draw a fine of as much as $1,500 (New York State DMV, undated). That ceiling reaches the vehicle owner as well as the driver.
On the DMV side, if you operate a vehicle without liability coverage and are involved in a crash reported to DMV, your driver license and vehicle registration will both be revoked for a minimum period (New York State DMV, undated). If someone else drives your uninsured vehicle, is involved in a crash, and is convicted of operating without insurance, the owner's license and registration are revoked for at least one year (New York State DMV, undated). To get a license back after a revocation for driving uninsured, you must pay DMV an additional civil penalty on top of any court fine (New York State DMV, undated). Revocation lengths and current civil penalty amounts sit on DMV's schedule rather than in the fine provision, so confirm both with DMV for your own case before planning around a date. New York's lever here is revocation plus civil penalty rather than a filing your insurer makes on your behalf; if a filing is ordered in your case, DMV or the court will say so.
A lapse needs no crash and no traffic stop to cause trouble. DMV's rule is "No Insurance, No Plates": if your liability coverage is going to end, surrender the plates to DMV before coverage stops (New York State DMV, undated). For a lapse of 90 days or less, and only if you have not used the option in the prior 36 months, you can instead pay a lapse civil penalty charged per day of the lapse at escalating daily rates by day range (Simple Insurance Guide, 2026-10). Longer lapses fall outside that option.
Minimum vs. Recommended Coverage
This compares limits and coverage types only, not companies. The right-hand column is a framing, not a legal standard.
| State minimum (VTL §311 / Ins. Law §3420) | Higher limits to consider |
|---|---|
| Bodily injury: $25,000 per person / $50,000 per crash (New York State DMV, undated) | Several multiples of that floor, with SUM matched to the same limits |
| Property damage: $10,000 per crash (New York State DMV, undated) | Several multiples of the $10,000 figure, since it is per crash, not per vehicle |
| PIP: $50,000 mandatory no-fault (Simple Insurance Guide, 2026-10) | Optional additional medical and wage-loss coverage above the floor |
| UM bodily injury: 25/50, fixed and unwaivable (thatcarhitme.com, undated) | SUM up to your own liability limits, subject to the prescribed maximum (Insurance Law §3420(f)(2)) |
| Collision and comprehensive: not required by the state | Required by lenders and lessors as a loan or lease condition |
The gap is easiest to see on property damage. The $10,000 minimum (New York State DMV, undated) is a single per-crash figure covering everything you damage. As straight arithmetic, if you are at fault in a crash costing three times that minimum, your policy pays $10,000 and the remaining $20,000 is yours to answer for personally. The same arithmetic applies to bodily injury above $25,000 per person.
New York's 25/50/10 minimums have not been substantially updated in decades, while medical costs, repair costs and wages have risen (JTNY Law, 2026-04). They are a legal floor from an earlier cost environment. Whether higher limits suit you depends on your assets, your vehicle, your lender's terms and your budget — and whether any given claim is paid, and for how much, is decided case by case on the language your insurer actually filed.
Questions
Can I keep my out-of-state policy after moving to New York?
No. DMV does not accept out-of-state insurance; coverage must be issued by a company licensed by the NYS Department of Financial Services and certified by DMV (New York State DMV, undated). Many insurers write through a New York-licensed company within the same group, so the fix is often a New York policy rather than a new insurer. Confirm the issuing company is DMV-certified before you register.
Do I need insurance on a car I'm not driving?
Yes, if it is registered. Liability coverage must remain in effect while the vehicle registration is valid, even if the vehicle is not used (New York State DMV, undated). To stop paying for coverage on a stored car, surrender the plates to DMV before the coverage ends, under the "No Insurance, No Plates" rule (New York State DMV, undated).
Can I decline uninsured motorist coverage to lower my premium?
Not the mandatory part. New York's uninsured motorist bodily injury coverage is fixed at the same 25/50 minimum as liability and cannot be waived (thatcarhitme.com, undated). The optional layer is SUM, which your insurer must offer up to your own bodily injury limits under Insurance Law §3420(f)(2) and which you can decline or reduce only by signing the state's prescribed waiver form (thatcarhitme.com, undated).
My coverage lapsed for three weeks. Do I have to turn in my plates?
Possibly not. For a lapse of 90 days or less, and only if you have not used the option in the prior 36 months, DMV allows a lapse civil penalty charged per day of the lapse at escalating daily rates by day range instead of surrendering plates (Simple Insurance Guide, 2026-10). Contact DMV to confirm eligibility and the amount for your dates; the option is not automatic.
What happens to the owner if someone else drives their uninsured car?
The owner is exposed as well as the driver. Allowing someone else to drive your uninsured vehicle can draw a traffic court fine of as much as $1,500 (New York State DMV, undated). If that driver crashes and is convicted of operating without insurance, the owner's license and registration are revoked for at least one year (New York State DMV, undated).